Paleontologists in China have detected traces of an unlaid egg in a 110 - million - year - old bird fogy from the Cretaceous period , in what ’s considered the first discovery of its kind . And in an dry twist , it appears the egg is what killed the mother bird .
Say hello to Avimaia schweitzerae , a new described bird specie from the Cretaceous . The fossil is noteworthy in that is still contains traces of an unlaid nut and a medullary bone — a special type of bone tissue paper related to egg - egg laying . It ’s the first time paleontologists have chance those two elements together in a dodo , and the first meter mo of ball shell have been discovered in such an ancient fossil . These finding were released today in a Nature Communicationspaperauthored by Alida Bailleul and Jingmai O’Connor from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences .
As a species , Avimaia schweitzerae ( stand for “ mother bird ” and a nod to paleontologist Mary Higby Schweitzer ) may be new to science , but it belonged to a well - documented group of ancient fowl known as Enantiornithes . This family of birds was quite successful , live over 100 million years ago alongside dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops . A neat thing about Enantiornithes is that they were born with trajectory feathers , which suggests they could fly very soon after hatching .
The fossil , identified as IVPP V25371 , was find in northwestern China , and it was very well preserved despite being crushed savorless like a flapjack . The partial skeleton in the cupboard consists of the bottom half of the thorn , pelvis , hind limbs , and trace of feathering .
The bits of eggshell , which came as a surprise to the paleontologists , were discover inside the bird ’s abdomen following microscopical examination . Analysis of the fragments showed portion of the ball membrane and shield ( the outmost protective stratum of the shell ) , the latter of which was coat with proteins and other constitutive materials . Interestingly , the researchers also bring out evidence of small celestial sphere - like mineral be of calcium phosphate . Similar mineral are found among birds who part inter their eggs , suggesting Avimaia schweitzerae did the same — not a huge revelation , given that Enantiornithes are already suspect to have lay to rest their eggs .
The condition of the eggshell fragments , however , powerfully suggest the Bronx cheer ’s reproductive scheme was not functioning properly . And in fact , the unlaid egg itself probably resulted in the destruction of this specimen , the source indicate . The shell was unusually thin and it featured two layers alternatively of one . Together , it suggests this birdie suffered from testis - binding , an often fateful term in which birds are ineffectual to lay a develop egg .
Analysis of the fossil also yield ghost of a unparalleled reproductive tissue paper call the medullary bone , which acts as a calcium source for the develop egg .
“ This Mesozoic wench specimen is the only one I know of that save both an ball and the medullary osseous tissue , ” Michael Pittmann , a paleontologist at the University of Hong Kong who was not affiliated with the fresh study , told Gizmodo . “ It provide the sound evidence yet of a female early chick that was reproductively active . The fossil also allow invaluable insight into the replication of Enantiornithines , a diverse group of early birds that dominated the Cretaceous and cover ‘ out of the egg running ’ and perhaps ready to aviate too . ”
[ Nature Communications ]
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