Chin Karen, Eberth David A, Schweitzer Mary H, Rando Thomas A, Sloboda Wendy J, Horner John R
Department of Geological Sciences and CU Museum, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, USA.
Palaios. 2003 Jun;18(3):286-94. doi: 10.1669/0883-1351(2003)018<0286:rpoumt>2.0.co;2.
Exceptionally detailed soft tissues have been identified within the fossilized feces of a large Cretaceous tyrannosaurid. Microscopic cord-like structures in the coprolitic ground mass are visible in thin section and with scanning electron microscopy. The morphology, organization, and context of these structures indicate that they are the fossilized remains of undigested muscle tissue. This unusual discovery indicates specific digestive and taphonomic conditions, including a relatively short gut-residence time, rapid lithification, and minimal diagenetic recrystallization. Rapid burial of the feces probably was facilitated by a flood event on the ancient coastal lowland plain on which the fecal mass was deposited.
在一种大型白垩纪暴龙科恐龙的粪便化石中发现了异常精细的软组织。粪化石基质中的微小绳状结构在薄片中以及通过扫描电子显微镜都可见。这些结构的形态、组织和背景表明它们是未消化肌肉组织的化石遗迹。这一不同寻常的发现表明了特定的消化和埋藏条件，包括相对较短的肠道停留时间、快速石化以及最小程度的成岩重结晶。粪便的快速掩埋可能是由粪便团块沉积所在的古代沿海低地平原上的洪水事件促成的。
