Toronto: Dismissing a common perception that dinosaurs were solitary, vicious monsters, researchers have found evidence that just like most modern animals, these gigantic creatures too loved company and they lived and died together in groups.
"The common mythology of dinosaurs depicts solitary, vicious monsters running around eating everything," said one of the researchers Gregory Funston from University of Alberta in Canada.
"Our discovery demonstrates that dinosaurs are more similar to modern animals than people appreciate," Funston noted.
"This evidence shows that dinosaurs were social beings with gregarious behaviour who lived and died together in groups," he added.
The discovery comes from a site in Mongolia, first encountered by paleontologists a decade ago. The site contained thousands of shards of destroyed bone, belying the telltale evidence of a previous discovery by fossil poachers.
After conducting additional field work, scientists discovered a bonebed with an assemblage of bird-like Avimimus dinosaurs, who were extremely rare prior to this discovery.
Though it is common knowledge that modern birds form flocks, this is the first evidence of flocking behaviour in bird-like dinosaurs, Funston explained.
"With an assemblage like this, you can't really understand why the dinosaurs died together unless you see the field site," Funston said.
"We can tell that they were living together around the time of death, but the mystery still remains as to why," he added.
The findings on the bird-like dinosaur Avimimus from the late-Cretaceous period were published in the journal Scientific Reports.
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
"The common mythology of dinosaurs depicts solitary, vicious monsters running around eating everything," said one of the researchers Gregory Funston from University of Alberta in Canada.
"Our discovery demonstrates that dinosaurs are more similar to modern animals than people appreciate," Funston noted.
The discovery comes from a site in Mongolia, first encountered by paleontologists a decade ago. The site contained thousands of shards of destroyed bone, belying the telltale evidence of a previous discovery by fossil poachers.
Advertisement
Though it is common knowledge that modern birds form flocks, this is the first evidence of flocking behaviour in bird-like dinosaurs, Funston explained.
Advertisement
"We can tell that they were living together around the time of death, but the mystery still remains as to why," he added.
Advertisement
(This story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
COMMENTS
Advertisement
3 US School Children Discover Rare T. Rex Fossil: ''My Friends Don't Believe Me'' Dog Walker Unearths 70-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur In France: Report Scientists Discover "Superstructure" In Pacific Ocean That Has Been Growing Since Dinosaur Age World's Largest Isolated Tribe Makes Rare Appearance In New Footage Barack Obama Wants Joe Biden To Pull Out Of US Presidential Race: Report 32 Dead In Bangladesh Unrest, Protesters Set Fire To State TV Headquarters Comedy Legend Bob Newhart Dead At 94: Publicist Israeli Strike Kills Field Commander In Elite Hezbollah Unit: Report Delhi-San Francisco Air India Flight Diverted To Russia After Engine Glitch Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.