Tyrannosaurs are often seen as fierce hunters. But recent research shows they also knew how to scavenge. When they found an easy meal, they would eat every last bit, even scraps of old carcasses.
This insight comes from a study at Aarhus University, published in Evolving Earth. Josephine Nielsen, a Master’s student in geoscience, led this research. She used advanced 3D scanning to look at a fossilized foot bone from a large tyrannosaur over 75 million years old. Her analysis uncovered 16 bite marks from a smaller tyrannosaur on this bone.
Nielsen explains, “The depth, angle, and placement of these marks show they weren’t random. A smaller tyrannosaur was feeding on a bigger one.” This suggests that even tough bones with little meat weren’t off-limits when food was scarce.
She noted, “The bone shows no signs of healing, which means it was a fresh feeding. The marks are on the foot, an area with hardly any meat, indicating the smaller dinosaur was cleaning up an old carcass.”
Instead of working directly with the fragile fossil, Nielsen examined a digital model and a 3D-printed copy made at her university. She noted, “It would have been special to work with the real bone, but shipping it safely to Denmark was too risky.”
The metatarsal measures about 10 centimeters and belonged to a tyrannosaur that was likely 10-12 meters long and weighed several tons. Discovered by an amateur collector in Montana’s Judith River Formation, this region is rich in dinosaur fossils and history. The bone is now housed at the Badlands Dinosaur Museum in Dickinson, North Dakota.
Nielsen highlighted the advantages of digital tools, saying, “High-resolution scans let me see details that are hard to spot otherwise.” Using a systematic classification method for analyzing the bite marks, she could distinguish different types of bites. “It’s like solving an ancient mystery,” she added.
This innovative approach to studying fossils not only reveals more about how dinosaurs lived but also sets a new standard for paleontological research. Paleontologist Taia Wyenberg-Henzler and museum curator Denver Fowler helped Nielsen in her project, which started when she volunteered at an excavation camp in Montana.
By using modern techniques, researchers like Nielsen can uncover rich details about dinosaur behavior from what might seem like minor traces. “Now, we can talk about bite marks in a precise way,” she explains. Understanding these interactions adds a fascinating layer to our knowledge of these ancient creatures and how they survived millions of years ago.
For more on dinosaur discoveries and how technology plays a role in paleontology, you can check resources like Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History here.
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New Species; Ecology Research; Food; Animals; Fossils; Dinosaurs; Evolution; Ancient DNA
