A shocking discovery was made a few weeks ago when construction workers in a popular town in China found more than 30 fossilized dinosaur eggs buried deep underground while digging the area to build a new school.
The eggs are still perfectly intact despite the use of explosives to break up the large boulder in which the nest of eggs was stuck.
Workers in a popular town in China found more than 30 fossilized dinosaur eggs
China’s Hometown of Dinosaurs
Heyuan City is popularly known as China’s Hometown of Dinosaurs where almost one third of the world’s total fossilized dinosaur eggs have been unearthed up till now. The international community of scientists has shown interest in the city’s dinosaur egg fossil site called Shixia and several experts have travelled thousands of miles to study the site and understand Heyuan’s geology. The eggs that have been discovered from this interesting Chinese city have helped scientists study and understand the history of Asian dinosaurs.
The Guinness Book of World Records has also recognized Heyuan for setting a world record in discovering more dinosaur egg fossils than any other place on the planet. Till now, more than 10,000 eggs have been discovered here. Other historical artifacts including eight dinosaur skeletons and almost 168 dinosaur footprints have also been found in this city.
One third of the world’s total fossilized dinosaur eggs that have been discovered so far come from Heyuan City .
Fossilized Eggs Older than 130 Million Years Found
The latest discovery that has been made in Heyuan was a cluster of dinosaur eggs unearthed by construction workers who had been in the process of building the foundation of a new school.
The cluster, which consisted of more than 30 eggs, are believed to be 130 million years old. The authorities say that, luckily, the strong eggs survived despite the construction workers’ attempt to detonate the boulder of rock they were stuck in.
After using the explosive to break the boulder apart, the workers proceeded to take away the crumbled pieces of the rock, only to discover an impressive nest of fossilized eggs buried deep inside. Mysterious fragments of black shell-like structure which was 2 millimeters in thickness was also found next to the eggs.
Eggs Belong to the Cretaceous Period
At first, the workers at the site were not sure what the greyish, stone-like objects were so they called the police to confirm the suspicions that they were indeed fossilized eggs belonging to dinosaurs that had ceased to exist more than 65 million years ago.
The police officers notified the Dayu County Museum about the discovery and the eggs were whisked away to a secure location in order to examine how old they were.
The cluster, which consisted of more than 30 eggs, are believed to be 130 million years old
The museum staff released an official statement later confirming the real age of the rare eggs. They also said that the eggs belonged to the Cretaceous period which began 145 million years ago, closely following the Jurassic period. The dinosaurs that existed during this period included the three-horned triceratops and tyrannosaurus rex.
Plans of Building a Dinosaur-themed Park
Almost all the fossils that have been unearthed from the city of Heyuan date back to the Cretaceous period which ended almost 65 million years ago. The city has also decided to sign a $121 million contract with a company to build a dinosaur themed park within the next few years.
The aim of the project is to raise awareness about the historical importance of the city and to educate people about the history of dinosaurs in Asia. The park will be built on Shixia, the famous dinosaur egg fossil site, and its surrounding area.
The government has announced that it will taken cautionary measures to protect the historic sites of the fossils by building a core protection area around the site. The dinosaur-themed park will become one of the biggest parks in China, accommodating more than 2 million people and generating almost $24 million revenue every year.
