Before the dawn of the dinosaurs, the world belonged to reptiles called rhynchosaurs. They were the size of pigs and thrived all over the planet 225 million to 245 million years ago during the mid- and late Triassic Period. They may get overshadowed by the earliest dinosaurs, he suggests, although they make up 90 percent of vertebrate fossils in some Triassic digs. This highly unusual way of eating may have doomed rhynchosaurs as they reached old age. Unable to bite their food, these old rhynchosaurs may have starved to death, Dr. Benton said.

---

Persons: ”, Michael Benton, . Benton, rhynchosaurs, Benton Organizations: University of Bristol Locations: England