Why the dinosaurs became extinct? Researchers have a new concept
Dinosaurs became extinct nearly 65 million years ago. What caused it? There are many theories, but the most popular is the one that says a large bolide hit the surface of the Earth. Now another one has appeared.
New concept of dinosaur extinctionów is based on an analysis of the weight gain on the teeth of these creatures. A hypacrosaur embryo tooth has been examined – The duck-billed animal, whichórgo length reached nine metersów. Based on daily tooth growth, scientists have determined that the young Hippacrosaurus móheads hatch only after pół year after the egg was laid. Conclusion? Dinosaurs became extinct because they couldn’t reproduce fast enough.
The egg is easy prey for predatorsów. U gatunków, whichórych eggs were larger, the incubation period was correspondingly longer. On top of that, the young individual was also unable to take care of his safety. By the time this one matured and gained sufficient mass, other species were already fully independent. This put dinosaurs behind other species.
– Dinosaurs were wasting energy. They were large and warm-blooded. Even their smallest species took at least a year to mature – said Professor Gregory Erickson of the University of Florida.
To theories about the impact of a large object on Earth and climate change, whichóre contributed to the extinction of dinosaursóin should be added another, whichóra does not exclude the others. Birds and mammals, whichóre reproduce faster, they were also able to adapt faster to climate change, które could have been caused, for example, by. asteroid impact. Their population was also able to recover faster after the cataclysmic event.