Dinosaur Body Temperature
New research suggests that certain types of dinosaurs may have had the ability to control their own body temperature, potentially making them the first warm-blooded terrestrial reptiles.
Study Details
The study, conducted by experts from University College London (UCL) and the University of Vigo, analyzed 1,000 fossils and climate models spanning the entire Mesozoic Era, which lasted from 230 to 66 million years ago.
Therapods and Ornithischians
Therapods (including the T-Rex) and Ornithischians (including the Triceratops) are believed to have moved to colder environments during the Early Jurassic period, possibly leading to the development of endothermy, or internal heat production.
Environmental Changes
The researchers suggest that an event 183 million years ago, known as the Jenkyns event, caused by intense volcanic activity and global warming, may have prompted the emergence of different climate preferences among dinosaur groups.
Impact of Endothermy
The adoption of endothermy could have allowed theropods and ornithischians to thrive in colder environments by enabling them to be highly active, sustain activity over longer periods, grow faster, and produce more offspring.
Origins of Birds' Temperature Regulation
The study also suggests that the unique temperature regulation seen in birds may have originated in theropod dinosaurs during the Early Jurassic epoch.
Adaptations in Sauropods
Sauropods, which remained in warmer climates, grew to gigantic sizes around the same time, possibly as an adaptation to environmental pressures. Their larger size and reduced surface area to volume ratio would have helped them retain heat
Environmental Crisis
The adoption of endothermy by certain dinosaur groups may have been a response to environmental crises, such as the Jenkyns event, which led to global warming and extinction of plant groups, pushing dinosaurs to adapt to colder environments.