The oldest skin in the world preserved in a very rare fossil
The oldest skin in the world preserved in a very rare fossil
Written by Michael Irving
The earliest skin fossils that have been found date back much beyond the time of the dinosaurs. The samples, which were discovered in an Oklahoman cave, demonstrate how little reptile scales have altered over the previous 286 million years.
Skeletons make up the majority of fossils found in museums, and the explanation is straightforward: because bones take longer to break down than other materials, they have more time to fossilise. We don't often locate soft tissues like skin, muscle, or organs since they often waste away or are consumed by scavengers soon after death.
But it is possible in some situations. If you bury it fast enough in the ideal medium, you may find preserved feathered dinosaur tails in amber, a brain that is 133 million years old pickled in bogs, and a nodosaur that still has its skin and scales and appears to be dozing off.
The oldest known fossilised skin has now been discovered by researchers at the University of Toronto; it is at least 21 million years older than the record-holding animal. The sample is at least 40 million years older than the earliest dinosaurs, dating from 286 to 289 million years ago.
The oldest known fossilised skin has now been discovered by researchers at the University of Toronto; it is at least 21 million years older than the record-holding animal. The sample is at least 40 million years older than the earliest dinosaurs, dating from 286 to 289 million years ago.
it has an interesting appearance, resembling the skin of a crocodile that was just shed yesterday. Its surface is recognisable as pebbles, and the scientists compare the hinged areas in between the scales to the skin of a snake.
Source newatlas.com
The majority of our knowledge about ancient animal skin comes from impressions, which are mud-based, indirect imprints left on the surface that eventually turn into rock before the skin decomposes. The skin itself is retained in this instance in a number of tiny, three-dimensional pieces, including the harder outer layer called the epidermis and the less common inner layer called the dermis.
The majority of our knowledge about ancient animal skin comes from impressions, which are mud-based, indirect imprints left on the surface that eventually turn into rock before the skin decomposes. The skin itself is retained in this instance in a number of tiny, three-dimensional pieces, including the harder outer layer called the epidermis and the less common inner layer called the dermis.
Fossil hunters Bill and Julie May found the fossils in Oklahoma's Richards Spur limestone cave system. This site might have been crucial in the skin's exceptional preservation over an extended period of time.
According to Ethan Mooney, the study's first author, "Animals would have fallen into this cave system during the early Permian and been buried in very fine clay sediments that delayed the decay process." The worst part is that during the Permian, this cave system was also a site of active oil seepage; interactions between the hydrocarbons in tar and petroleum are probably what maintained this skin.
According to Ethan Mooney, the study's first author, "Animals would have fallen into this cave system during the early Permian and been buried in very fine clay sediments that delayed the decay process." The worst part is that during the Permian, this cave system was also a site of active oil seepage; interactions between the hydrocarbons in tar and petroleum are probably what maintained this skin.
The specimens will be kept at the Royal Ontario Museum, where additional research may shed light on the ancient animals' skin.
The study's findings were released in the Current Biology journal.
The study's findings were released in the Current Biology journal.
Source newatlas.com
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