Fossilized skin of a reptile that lived before the appearance of dinosaurs was found in the USA
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Paleontologists have discovered the oldest fossilized skin of an unknown creature that lived before the first dinosaurs appeared.
In a study by scientists from the University of Toronto Mississauga, published in the journal Current Biology, it is stated that a fragment of fossilized reptile skin was found in a limestone cave in Oklahoma (USA). The age of the find is approximately 289 million years, writes CNN.
Scientists have identified a fragment of skin similar to the skin of a crocodile and a lizard. This is the oldest known example of preserved epidermis, which is the outer layer of the skin of terrestrial reptiles, birds, and mammals. The epidermis “was an important evolutionary adaptation during the transition to life on land,” the researchers note.
The skin was preserved in a fragment smaller than the size of a fingernail. Its pebbly surface is similar to the skin of a crocodile, and the folds resemble those of snakes and legless lizards.
| Image: Current Biology |
Despite these features, researchers cannot say with certainty which animal or body part the specimen came from because the fossil is not associated with any other remains.
They suggest that the fragment may have belonged to a small reptile called Captorhinus, fossils of which have been found in the cave system far more often than any other similar animal.
Study co-author Robert Reiss, a professor of biology at the University of Toronto Mississauga who studies vertebrate paleontology, notes that fossilized skin is “very rare, even though it’s actually the largest organ in the body.”
“After the death of the animal, the skin decomposes very quickly”– said Reiss.
He added that this specimen was preserved because of the unique features of the Richards Spur limestone caves in Oklahoma.
The animal was “buried” in fine clay deposits, and the interaction with oil, which had been seeping into the cave for a long time, slowed down its decomposition. According to the researchers, the cave also had an oxygen-free environment.
Read also: Scythians carried arrows in bags made of human skin – study
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