Newswise – Tyrannosaurus rex not only was it a huge beast with a big bite, but it had nerve sensors at the tips of its jaw that allowed it to better detect and eat its prey, a new study published in the peer-reviewed journal. Historical biology find today.
“T. rex it was an even more fearsome predator than previously thought, ”explains lead author Dr. Soichiro Kawabe of the Dinosaur Research Institute at Fukui Prefectural University in Japan.
“Our findings show the nerves of the jaw (an area of the jaw) of Tyrannosaurus Rex it is distributed in a more complex way than that of any other dinosaur studied to date and comparable to that of modern crocodiles and birds that feed on touch, which have extremely sharp senses.
“It simply came to our notice then T. rex he was sensitive to slight differences in material and movement; indicates the possibility that he was able to recognize the different parts of his prey and eat them differently depending on the situation.
“This completely changes our perception of T. rex like an insensitive dinosaur around his mouth, which put anything and everything to bite anything and everything, including bones. “
Although the morphology of the vessels and nerves of the jaw in several fossil reptiles has been analyzed, this study is the first investigation of the internal structure of the jaw of T. rex.
Dr. Kawabe, who was joined by Dr. Soki Hattori’s assistant professor at the Dinosaur Research Institute, used computed tomography (CT) to analyze and reconstruct the neurovascular distribution channel of a fossil jaw. T. rex, which was originally found in the Hell Creek Formation, Montana.
They then compared their reconstruction to other dinosaurs such as Triceratops, as well as crocodiles and live birds.
This allowed the researchers to describe the well-preserved channels that house the vessels and nerves in the dental of Tyrannosaurus Rex.
“The present study reveals the presence of neurovascular channels with complex branching in the lower jaw of Tyrannosaurus, especially in the anterior region of the dentary, and it is assumed that a similarly complex branching neurovascular canal would also be present in its upper jaw, ”says Dr. Kawabe.
He added: “The neurovascular canal with a branching pattern as complex as that of existing crocodiles and ducks, suggests that the trigeminal nervous system in Tyrannosaurus it probably functioned as a snout-sensitive sensor.
“It should be noted that the sensitivity of the snout Tyrannosaurus it may not have been as improved as that of the crocodiles because Tyrannosaurus it does not have the thick neuronal tissue that occupies the neurovascular canal unlike existing crocodiles.
“However, the sensitivity of the snout Tyrannosaurus it was considerably larger than that of ornithischian dinosaurs compared in this study. “
The results of the paper are consistent with analyzes of the surface of the skull of another tyrannosaurus, Daspletosaurus, and the morphology of the neurovascular canal within the jaw of the allosaurid Neovenator, which indicate that the facial area of theropods may have been very sensitive.
“These inferences also suggest that, in addition to predation, the jawbones of tyrannosaurs were adapted to perform a series of movements with movements until they included nest construction, parental care, and intraspecific communication,” the doctor adds. Hattori.
Limitations of the study include that the equipment does not analyze the entire area of the jaw T. rex and other dinosaurs used for comparison, however, as the uninvestigated proportion is negligible, the trend shown “should be a reasonable estimate.”