Fossil poaching threatens scientific study
Fossil poaching threatens scientific study, says University of Alberta researcher.
Fossil poaching threatens scientific study, says University of Alberta researcher. Gregory Funstonwho has been excavating a site in Mongolia says fossil poaching threatens to destroy evidence central to scientific study. Funston said public awareness about the active fossil trade is essential to preserving historical data. “It came to a head last year when Nicolas Cage returned a (fossil),” he said, adding that it’s a rampant problem in central Asia. The actor had bought a rare stolen dinosaur skull for more than $350,000 and turned it over to authorities. “Mongolia does have fossil laws but it’s difficult to police the Gobi Desert.” Individual dinosaur teeth, for example, are sold online for more than a partial skull, Funston said. His team uncovered new information about the Avimimus, a small bird-like dinosaur. The fossils, which date back to the Late Cretaceous period, or 70 million years ago, are the remains of a group of feathered omnivores measuring about 1.5 meters long. It’s the first evidence showing the dinosaurs lived together and were social animals Funston said. His findings were published Friday in the open access journal Scientific Reports, which is part of the Nature group of scientific journals. Funston said he wants to excite the public about the science of paleontology, instead of focusing on ferocious or large dinosaurs depicted in movies such as Jurassic Park. “We need to start thinking of it as a science, less as stamp collecting and more as our shared heritage. There’s a lot more to it than just dinosaurs”he said.
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