Rare sauropod dinosaur teeth found in Australia

Diamantinasaurus matilda AODF 2298 (AODL 127) teeth (probably from the same individual as AODF 836). (a–o) Upper right teeth in mesial (a,b), mesiolabial (c), labial (d), distolabial (e,f), distal (g,h), distolingual (i), lingual (j), mesiolingual (k,l), apical (m,n) and basal (o) views. (a), (e), (g), (k), (m) and (o) are photographs; all other images are screenshots of digital models. Scale bar = 10 mm. Credit: Royal Society Open Science (2022). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220381

A team of researchers at The Jump-Up Australian Museum of Natural History of Dinosaur Age, working with colleagues from the University of New England and University College London, have discovered fossilized sauropod teeth in the Queensland Upper Cretaceous Winter Formation in Australia. In their paper published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, the group explained their findings and their importance to understanding the history of creatures in Australia.

Sauropods were large, plant-eating dinosaurs with long necks that lived in many parts of the world. Fossils have been found in many countries, but are rarely found in Australia due to its unique geography. The country has very few places where Cretaceous or Jurassic rocks are exposed on the surface. The excavation site for this new endeavor, called Mitchell, is nothing more than a small mound sticking out of the vast flat landscape used for herding sheep. The site has so far produced 17 sauropod teeth.

The researchers noted that sauropods did not chew their food and thus, they did not have molars. All of their teeth are semi-conical and curved with a pointed tip and slightly offset. Dinosaurs would use it in conjunction with their tongues and jaws to pick up leaves and cut them into their mouths, which they would consume as is—no preprocessing going on in the mouth. Thus, the intestines have to do all the work, a process that can take as long as two weeks.

The researchers found markings on the teeth indicating that they had worn out from constant eating. The markings also provide clues about the types of plants the dinosaurs ate—flowers, conifers and gingko, and possibly horsetail, which no longer grow in Australia. The creature’s neck length limit indicates that they most likely ate plants that had leaves that were about 1 meter from the ground to about 10 meters high. The researchers obtained precise measurements of the teeth by making impressions of them, which were then coated with a very thin layer of gold—which made it possible to study the tooth’s features using an electron microscope.

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Further information:
Stephen F. Poropat et al, Sauropod dinosaur teeth from the Lower Upper Cretaceous Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia and early titanosauriform global record, Royal Society Open Science (2022). DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220381

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Quote: Rare sauropod dinosaur teeth found in Australia (2022, 14 July) retrieved 14 July 2022 from https://phys.org/news/2022-07-rare-sauropod-dinosaur-teeth-uncovered.html

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