The fossilized stomach contents were retrieved from a Diamantinasaurus matildae specimen dating back between 94 and 101 million years that was excavated in 2017 by staff and volunteers at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History.
Closer inspection revealed it was a cololite, the fancy name for preserved stomach contents, with multiple layers of plant fossils embedded within it.
This marked the first time sauropod stomach contents had been found, which is sort of remarkable for an animal group as well-studied and long-lived (geologically speaking) as sauropods.
Stephen Poropat Today we see this kind of digestion in large-bodied hindgut fermenters like elephants, rhinos, and horses.
Stephen Poropat “A horde of hatchlings would have been able to decimate tracts of low-growing plants pretty rapidly.
When staff and volunteers at the Australian Age of Dinosaurs Museum of Natural History excavated a Diamantinasaurus matildae specimen in 2017, they found the fossilized stomach contents inside a specimen that was between 94 and 101 million years old. This one originated from the Winton Formation of Queensland, Australia, which is home to creatures from the mid-Cretaceous period. Sauropods as a group span approximately 130 million years.
Although the specimen was impressive and almost finished, it also included an enigmatic lump of rock. Upon closer examination, it was discovered to be a cololite—a fancy term for preserved stomach contents—containing several layers of plant fossils.
For a group of animals as well-studied and long-lived (geologically speaking) as sauropods, the discovery of their stomach contents was the first of its kind. They discovered fossil evidence of angiosperm leaves, seed-fern fruiting bodies, and conifers inside. It also demonstrated that these animals relied on fermentation and the gut microbiota to break down their food rather than actually chewing it.
A sauropod would have produced a significant amount of heat through fermentation.
Stephen Poropat.
This type of digestion is still observed in large-bodied hindgut fermenters such as horses, rhinos, and elephants. They can graze on rather inferior plant matter all day long, and in their stomachs, they can transform it into something more appetizing. Since we are aware that it is a heat-producing process, does that imply…?
“A sauropod would have produced a significant amount of heat through fermentation,” lead author Stephen Poropat of Curtin University told IFLScience. Having a long neck and tail could have served as a means of both keeping the brain away from their stomach furnace and efficiently dumping heat, similar to an elephant’s ears. “.”.
In addition to being the first fossil discovery in history, this offers a fresh insight into how these massive dinosaurs, with their voracious appetites for large meals, shaped the prehistoric landscape not only as adults but throughout their entire lives.
It’s common to consider prehistoric animals as “their biggest adult selves,” rather than as infants, juveniles, or subadults, Poropat continued. However, if you take a step back and consider it, you can see that even as young animals, sauropods must have placed a big strain on their surroundings. “.”.
Whatever level or levels they fed at, sauropods would have been ecosystem engineers all their lives.
Stephen Poropat.
Tracts of low-growing plants could have been demolished quite quickly by a swarm of hatchlings. Both low and as high as they could reach, ferocious “teenage” sauropods would have decimated plants. The few of these that survived to adulthood would either continue to feed at the tops of trees or down low, vacuum-cleaner-style (or somewhere in between), which would still put stress on their surroundings. “.”.
It is fascinating to consider how sauropod feeding affected plants, forcing them to form defenses (chemical or physical), regrowing quickly, or encasing their seeds in fruits or seed pods to attract sauropods or at the very least allow them to spread them as they roamed and fecested. Regardless of the level or levels at which they fed, sauropods would have been ecosystem engineers all of their lives. “”.
