We have heard of mummies
and we also know about dinosaur fossils
So what is " dinosaur mummy "?
Psittacosaurus skeleton (model)
Tomorrow (July 16), Taizhou Museum and Beijing Museum of Natural History will jointly host "Dinosaur Mummy - Condensed Life" at Taizhou Museum. In this exhibition, the audience can see China's only dinosaur mummy at close range - the mummy fossil of Psittacosaurus.
Dinosaur mummies refer to dinosaur bones preserved with soft tissue fossils. The mummy fossil of Psittacosaurus is the first dinosaur mummy discovered in China and the fifth in the world.
The formation of dinosaur mummies
What is a dinosaur mummy
In 2008, researchers from the Beijing Museum of Nature discovered the mummy fossils of Psittacosaurus in the wild in western Liaoning. This is when the corpses of dinosaurs were preserved in a relatively dry environment after their death. They were first mummified and then petrified into fossils. This is how we have the "dinosaur mummies" we see today.
The mummy has been illuminated to see the impressions of the skin on it
"On the mummy fossil of Psittacosaurus, scientific researchers discovered rare skin traces, which allowed scientists or paleontology enthusiasts to see the appearance of ancient creatures for the first time. . Before this, we only knew the skeletal shape of ancient creatures and knew nothing about its muscle and soft tissues. After discovering the Psittacosaurus mummy fossil, we observed and scientifically described its skin and found that. The shape of the skin of Psittacosaurus is a number of small scales of different shapes, which are superimposed on each other and cover the surface of its skin. "Liu Di, a researcher at the Beijing Museum of Natural History, said that the most conspicuous cluster of scales is located on both sides of the neck and shoulders. , dinosaur lovers who enter the Taizhou Museum can take a closer look.
The burial site of juvenile Psittacosaurus skeletons
In addition to the Psittacosaurus mummy fossils, the exhibition hall also displays the burial sites of adult and juvenile Psittacosaurus skeletons, stomach stones, fossils that changed from four legs to two legs, etc. to infer Psittacosaurus's beak. Dragon behavior. For example, Psittacosaurus has nurturing behavior, is a typical herbivorous dinosaur, etc. In addition, there are a number of precious paleontological fossils such as Microraptor Gu's, Jeholosaurus, Confuciusornis, Liaoningosaurus and Manchurian crocodile, waiting for dinosaur lovers to come and see.
Microraptor Gu's
Different from previous dinosaur fossil exhibitions, in this exhibition, the audience can also see the skin imprints of dinosaurs and other ancient creatures, such as frogs, turtles, newts and other ancient creatures. Through these impressions, the audience can more intuitively see the most original and authentic appearance of these ancient creatures.
"This time, we will show you the shapes, structures, and habits of ancient creatures hundreds of millions of years ago, so that everyone can have a certain understanding of the biological significance, scientific research value, and popular science value of fossils. Welcome both adults and children of Taizhou to come in Take a look at Taizhou Museum," Liu Di said.
