A gigantic communal latrine created at the dawn of the dinosaurs has been unearthed in Argentina. A study in Scientific Reports tells of thousands of fossilized poos left by rhino-like megaherbivores were found clustered together. The dung contains clues to prehistoric diet, disease and vegetation.
The 240-million-year-old site is the world's oldest public toilet and the first evidence that ancient reptiles shared collective dumping grounds.
Here's something I didn't know: Nowadays, elephants, antelopes and horses defecate in socially agreed hotspots to mark territory and reduce the spread of parasites. The hoses in the field outside my window poo wherever they stand. Perhaps domesticated animals have given up the tendency to choose where they defecate in exchange for board and lodgings.
But the herd animals' best efforts are dwarfed by the enormous scale of this latrine - which breaks the previous record oldest toilet by 220 million years. Piles of fossil dung, some as wide as 40cm and weighing several kilograms, were found in seven massive patches across the Chanares Formation in La Rioja province. Apparently, fine ash covered the site and preserved the remains.
The 240-million-year-old site is the world's oldest public toilet and the first evidence that ancient reptiles shared collective dumping grounds.
Here's something I didn't know: Nowadays, elephants, antelopes and horses defecate in socially agreed hotspots to mark territory and reduce the spread of parasites. The hoses in the field outside my window poo wherever they stand. Perhaps domesticated animals have given up the tendency to choose where they defecate in exchange for board and lodgings.
But the herd animals' best efforts are dwarfed by the enormous scale of this latrine - which breaks the previous record oldest toilet by 220 million years. Piles of fossil dung, some as wide as 40cm and weighing several kilograms, were found in seven massive patches across the Chanares Formation in La Rioja province. Apparently, fine ash covered the site and preserved the remains.
The animal behind the action was Dinodontosaurus, an eight-foot-long megaherbivore similar to modern rhinos. These animals were dicynodonts - large, mammal-like reptiles common in the Triassic period when the first dinosaurs began to emerge. The dicynodont skull is highly specialized, light but strong, which would have enabled dicynodonts to cope with tough plant material.
The shared latrine strategy suggests they were gregarious, herd animals, who had good reasons to poo strategically. Firstly, it was important to avoid parasites. 'You don't poo where you eat', as the saying goes. But the huge pile also warns predators about the size of the herd.
What would aliens think of our sewers? Sometimes, I wonder if mankind will run out of space for all their cast-offs.
The shared latrine strategy suggests they were gregarious, herd animals, who had good reasons to poo strategically. Firstly, it was important to avoid parasites. 'You don't poo where you eat', as the saying goes. But the huge pile also warns predators about the size of the herd.
What would aliens think of our sewers? Sometimes, I wonder if mankind will run out of space for all their cast-offs.
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