One of the best ways to learn about long-dead dinosaurs is by studying their poop! Scientists from Uppsala University in Sweden recently conducted the largest-ever study of dinosaur coprolites, or fossilized feces. They analyzed more than 500 dino droppings. The results provided clues about how dinosaurs came to dominate Earth.
Dinosaurs first appeared about 240 million years ago. But over time, the planet’s climate—and what was available to eat—changed. Bits of food found in the coprolites showed that early dinosaurs adapted to eat a range of foods. Herbivores ate a variety of plants. Carnivores chowed down on insects, fish, or other animals. This flexibility may have helped them survive in a changing world, says Martin Qvarnström, a paleontologist, or scientist who studies prehistoric organisms, who worked on the study.