Overview
- The peer-reviewed study, published Thursday in PLOS ONE, reports the first fossil egg containing a Lystrosaurus embryo.
- Advanced X-ray CT at the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility revealed an unfused lower jaw, showing the animal died before hatching.
- The researchers conclude Lystrosaurus laid soft-shelled eggs, which rarely preserve, explaining the lack of prior direct evidence.
- The egg appears large for the animal and likely yolk-rich, producing precocial young well adapted to heat and drought after the End-Permian die-off.
- The specimen, found in 2008 in South Africa’s Karoo Basin by John Nyaphuli, offers clues that researchers say can inform how species cope with rapid climate stress today.