Fossilized vomit provides insight on predator that lived 290 million years ago
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BRANDON — A Brandon University paleontologist has helped identify prehistoric barf that’s nearly 290 million years old — and could be the oldest known example of fossilized vomit from a land-dwelling predator.
Mark MacDougall, an assistant biology professor, was part of a research team that identified 41 bones from at least three animals inside the regurgitated cluster by using CT scans and chemical analysis, the university said in a news release.
An artist’s interpretation of the barf a top predator vomited nearly 290 million years ago. (Supplied)
Signs point to the vomit coming from a top predator — likely an early relative of mammals — that gulped down a mixed meal that included a small reptile, a fast-moving lizard-like animal and part of a much larger plant-eater, and later coughed it back up.
“It’s rare to get such direct evidence of who was eating whom nearly 300 million years ago,” said MacDougall, co-author of the international study published last month in the journal Scientific Reports.
“In this case, the predator clearly bit off more than it could stomach,” he said.
Brandon University assistant biology professor Mark MacDougall was one of the scientists who helped identify the nearly 290-million-year-old vomit, known as regurgitalite. (Supplied)
Evidence of the behaviour from so many millennia ago gives scientists “a rare snapshot” of feeding behaviour, predator-prey relationships and food webs, the university said.
“This is like a prehistoric time capsule,” MacDougall said. “These animals lived together, died together and ended up in the same regurgitated pile, probably within days of each other. That kind of detail is incredibly rare in the fossil record.”
The fossil, known as a regurgitalite, was discovered at the Bromacker fossil site in central Germany.
The study was led by researchers from Germany’s Natural History Museum and France’s National Centre for Scientific Research. BU played a key role in interpreting the fossil and its ecological meaning, the university said.
Chris LeMoine, BU’s dean of science, said the discovery showcases the university’s global impact.
“This project highlights how Brandon University researchers are collaborating with colleagues around the world to contribute to significant fundamental discoveries,” LeMoine said in the news release.
“It’s rigorous science, creative thinking, and yes, sometimes a bit messy. That’s how we expand our understanding of the natural world past and present.”
— Brandon Sun
