Only recently has science began to unveil some of the mysteries of these behemoths. For decades it was believed that ancient DNA, proteins, and soft tissue could not be preserved over millions of years. Now, during the last 2 years, soft tissue was discovered deep inside the thigh bones of T-Rex.

There are times that inspiration for truth comes from science fiction, such as the best selling novel and blockbuster film, “Jurassic Park.” The film took some artistic liberty with their dinosaurian profiles. One of the most noticed was giving a carnivorous dinosaur known as Dilophosaurus a special skill – the ability to spit toxic venom.

According to their fossils, there was no evidence for venom production in this type of dinosaur. In fact to most paleontologists this idea was laughable. Today venomous dinosaurs might not be so funny.

A fossil of a small dinosaur called sinornithosaurus (a chicken-sized dinosaur) was discovered in China about 9 years ago. This species existed in the mid-Jurassic (about 124 million years ago). This find caused a sensation because it had clear evidence of feathering. In 2009 a research team studied the skull of this animal intensively and made an interesting discovery. They found mysterious air pockets located above many of the teeth. These “pockets” connected to grooves in the dinosaurs teeth that spanned from the base of the tooth to the tip. This would be the perfect mechanism for a venomous bite. Even though this new theory is controversial, it is a logical explanation.

If these little dinosaurs were poisonous, it may be impossible to tell anything about the venom itself. There would be no trace of it left after about 124 million years. The answer lies within their DNA. There is an unbearably slim chance of finding any soft tissue remaining in such a small fossil. This is always the problem for every paleontologist, we just have to take what we can get, and go as far as we can go – and hope for answers along the way.

For more information on this new discovery go to:

http://www.sciencenews.org/view/generic/id/51402/title/Groovy_teeth_suggest_dinosaur_was_venomous

Ida was a lemur-like mammal that roamed central Europe about 47 million years ago. She died at a relatively young age of 9 months, on the banks of the volcanic Lake Messel in modern-day Germany. The circumstances of her death play a large part in her current fame – researchers involved in the find speculate that Ida was overwhelmed by a belch of carbon dioxide gas from the lake, causing her to slip into the oxygen-deprived lake. The unique concoction of Messel’s volcanic water coupled with the lack of trauma to her body meant that Ida’s corpse was preserved almost perfectly preserved within the lake bed, gradually fossilizing over millions of years. In 1983, Ida’s fossilized remains were resurrected but the significance of this find only came to light in the past week.

Ida is remarkable because her fossilized skeleton is almost 95% complete. It includes almost every bone, fur, and even Ida’s final meal – fruit and leaves. In the past, similar fossils have been found but none so exquisitely preserved. Ida’s almost fully intact frame allows researchers to address questions that have frustrated them for decades.

In particular, it offers some intriguing clues to human origins. She dates from a time when primates split into two branches – anthropoids, whose descendants include humans, apes, and monkeys, and prosimians, whose descendants include lemurs. Ida has characteristics of both groups, and may hold the key to a shared lineage.

A commonly-held view among paleontologists is that anthropoids (and therefore humans) evolved from Eosimias, whose fossilized remains have been dated to 45 million years ago.

Jørn Hurum of the Natural History Museum of the University of Oslo and Philip Gingerich of the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, the main players in the Ida discovery, do not agree. Hurum and Gingerich believe that anthropoids arose from a more primitive group of primates called adapids.

Ida has a number of features not found in lemurs – namely a grooming claw on her second toe and front teeth arranged into a toothcomb. Furthermore, Ida’s front teeth and ankle resemble the anthropoid branch of primates. Together, these features suggest that adapids link primitive primates and anthropoids, and therefore the lineage leading to humans.

Many paleontologists are skeptical, however. Science magazine points out that Hurum and Gingerich’s analysis examined only 30 traits, where standard practice is to compare 200 to 400 traits. They quote Richard Kay, of Duke University, who says “There is no phylogenetic analysis to support the claims, and the data is cherry-picked.

Many in the science community have rolled their eyes at the manner of the announcement, which included an international press conference, publication of a book, and exclusive prime-time television special documentary. Hurum’s suggestion that “Any pop band is doing the same thing” did little to allay the criticism.

Ultimately, Ida is an important fossil and will doubtless shed considerable light on human origins. At the same time, the media blitz that accompanied the announcement seems to have tainted its significance and put critics on the offensive. Ida has changed some things – namely the debate about whether anthropoids come from the suborder strepsirrhinae or the suborder haplorrhinae. The “scientific find that will change everything”? Possibly not.