April the Tenontosaurus, which was previously hosted in the UK's Manchester Museum, seems to have more secrets in store for scientists. New research reveals rare new findings about the dinosaur.
Gastroliths or stomach stones were found inside April, which is considered an unusual find. Scientists said their discovery represents the second oldest occurrence of gastroliths in an ornithopod dinosaur and the first identified one in a more derived ornithopod, Phys.org reported.
Largest Dinosaur to Have Stomach Stones
Study author Dr. John Nudds from The University of Manchester originally acquired April the Tenontosaurus in 1999 for the university and was formerly on display in the Manchester Museum before it was replaced by the cast of Stan the Tyrannosaurus rex.
In the study titled "Gastroliths and Deinonychus teeth associated with a skeleton of Tenontosaurus from the Cloverly Formation (Lower Cretaceous)," published in the journal Cretaceous Research, paleontologists wrote that they used X-ray CT scanning and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to assess the seeds and ash found in April.
They found that these so-called seeds and ash were not what scientists initially thought and that the dinosaur did not die in a layer of ash as previously suggested when it was discovered. However, they did find two teeth of the predatory dinosaur called Deinonychus, which is a relative of the infamous Velociraptor.
The finding supports the idea that Deinonychus hunted and fed on Tenontosaurus, first proposed in 1970 by American paleontologist Professor John Ostrom.
Aside from the two teeth of Deinonychus, they also found the gastroliths. On record, there are only three unambiguous occurrences of gastroliths in an ornithopod dinosaur and April, the Tenontosaurus, is the largest ornithopod dinosaur known to have stomach stones.
April is one of the most complete specimens and best-preserved examples of Tenontosaurus available. The study shows a rare insight into the behaviors of prehistoric animals. It shows them as once-living animals, providing paleontologists with detailed information about the lives of these extinct animals.
The team dedicated this study to their colleague, friend, and co-author Dr. Jon Tennant, who passed away on April 9, 2020, before their research was published.
A display of the Deinonychus antirrhopus, a genus of carnivorous dromaeosaurid coelurosaurian dinosaurs and the Tenontosaurus, a genus of ornithopod dinosaur.
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Tenontosaurus Diet and Other Characteristics
According to the website Prehistoric Wildlife, Tenontosaurus is a herbivore about 6.5 to 8 meters long. Its tail takes up more than half of its total body length, supported by a network of strong tendons that ensures the dinosaur could carry it erect off the ground.
Scientists gave the dinosaur its Tentonosaurus name in 1970 because of these tendons. But its remains were first discovered in 1903 and were initially given the name Tenantosaurus by Barnum Brown. It was John Ostrom who officially re-spelled the name that is now scientifically recognized.
Over 60 specimens of Tenontosaurus recovered, which suggests that they could have commonly lived in the Aptian and Albian periods of the Cretaceous. Many of these fossils are like April, with some Deinonychus remnants. The findings were interpreted as evidence of the carnivore's pack hunting behavior in these herbivorous dinosaurs.
Further analysis showed that Tentonosaurus could adapt to life in various environments, whether the arid conditions of the Albian period or the wetter to tropical climate during wet seasons.
Their long forelimbs and strong finger bones were primarily quadrupedal. However, their long tail would have worked efficiently to balance them and allow the dinosaur to reach a greater plant material than other dinosaurs.
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