Researchers find ‘Jurassic Park’ in Zhejiang
Print Edition
EAST China’s Zhejiang Province was a “Jurassic Park” with a wide variety of dinosaurs during the Cretaceous period, according to findings of a six-year survey.
A total of 82 dinosaur fossil sites, with at least six species and 25 types of fossil eggs, were confirmed during the survey by a team of experts from the Zhejiang Institute of Hydrogeology and Engineering Geology and the Zhejiang Museum of Natural History, between 2006 and 2013.
Scientists used various research techniques ranging from geology, paleobiology to chronostratigraphy, combined with site inspections and excavations in their study.
“It has been proved that a large quantity of dinosaurs lived in Zhejiang during the Cretaceous period, about 65 million to 145 million years ago,” said Jin Xingsheng, deputy curator of the Zhejiang Museum of Natural History. “Compare with other southeastern provinces, Zhejiang has the largest amount of dinosaur fossils.”
Their discoveries also give evidence to the idea that a comet or asteroid impact caused the dinosaurs to become extinct.
Scientists found that sedimentary rocks, where most fossils were unearthed, were sandwiched between two layers of volcanic rocks, indicating vegetation was lush and suitable for dinosaurs in the early and middle Cretaceous period.
The evidence showed that a catastrophe in the late Cretaceous period might have ended the age of prehistoric creatures.
Scientists believe an asteroid was the most likely reason as it can result in a series of sudden climate changes such as volcanic eruptions, crustal faults and generate radioactive substances that killed dinosaurs.
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