Frozen in time: Scientists find rare fossil of dinosaur sitting on eggs with embryos inside cbc.ca - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from cbc.ca Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
10 MARCH 2021
An international team of scientists has announced the discovery of an extraordinary fossilized nest in China, preserving at least eight separate dinosaurs from 70 million years ago.
The clutch of ancient eggs belongs to a medium-sized adult oviraptor, and we know that because the parent is actually part of the fossil. The skeleton of this ostrich-like theropod is positioned in a crouch over two dozen eggs, at least seven of which were on the brink of hatching and still contain embryos inside.
The ancient scene is unprecedented, and provides the first hard evidence that dinosaurs were brooding parents, laying their eggs and incubating them for quite a long time.