Re: And the T. Rex bell goes "dung"!

[Gautam Majumdar <gautam@majumdar.demon.co.uk>]

Garrison Hilliard <garrison@efn.org> wrote
>*** Fossilized dropping show how T-rex ate
>
The publication is in today's Nature : 
Chin K, Tokaryk T T, Erickson G M, Calk L C, A king-sized theropod coprolite,
Nature 1998; 393: 680 - 82

The specimen (2.4 litre by volume) contains a high proportion of bone
fragments (30-50%).  Macroscopic fragments range in size from 2 - 34 mm in
length. The ground mass also contains sand grain sized bone cast. The
bones were clearly crushed before swallowing. How did T.rex did that with
only knife like teeth ?

There is also a review in the same issue of Nature :
Andrews P, Fernandez-Jalvo Y, 101 uses for fossilized faeces, Nature 1998;
393: 629-30.

Gautam Majumdar                 gautam@majumdar.demon.co.uk