October 13, 2023

Twelve fossilized eggs from a European long-neck dinosaur have been scanned to uncover the secrets they hold after 70 million years.

Using a CT scanner at Aarhus University, the Evolution Museum in Knuthenborg Safari Park has taken a sneak peek into twelve rare dinosaur eggs from a Hypselosaurus.

The eggs, which arrived at the Evolution Museum in September and were put on display, have been eagerly awaited to reveal their contents through an X-ray scan.

"The dinosaur eggs are unique because their placement suggests they were likely laid while the long-neck dinosaur was moving slowly forward, and they have remained undisturbed for the last 70 million years. Therefore, we have been very curious to see if there are any remnants of tiny dinosaurs inside the eggs," says Christoffer Knuth, director of the Evolution Museum in Knuthenborg Safari Park.

Exciting Discoveries Inside the Eggs

On Friday, the Hypselosaurus eggs were scanned using a powerful X-ray scanner at Aarhus University, which took around 50,000 images of the twelve eggs. This is the first time long-neck dinosaur eggs have been CT-scanned in Denmark.

Each egg measures approximately 30 centimeters in length and is clustered on a rock measuring 1.9 by 80 cm, weighing around 225 kg.

"What immediately stands out are the eggshells that appear to lie with the concave side up (the curve that normally faces downward) at the bottom inside several of the eggs. This suggests that several of the eggs hatched with young ones before they fossilized," explains Henrik Lauridsen, a biologist and lecturer in Clinical Medicine at Aarhus University, about the scanning.

"We also found some hyperintense elements inside several of the eggs that do not connect to the egg's surface. This means they are not just stones pressed in. But what exactly they are requires further investigation with more experienced eyes," says Henrik Lauridsen.

In-Depth Investigation Needed

The initial findings from the scanning will now be further examined by an expert in dinosaur eggs in France, a paleontologist in the USA, and through an even more comprehensive scan.

"It's exciting that the sneak peek into the dinosaur eggs already tells us something about the birth of dinosaurs, where some had hatched, and others perhaps had not when they fossilized. Most of what we know about dinosaurs is about how they died. Now, experts will review the 50,000 scanning images, and then we'll rescan all the eggs with an even more powerful scanner to focus on the most interesting areas from the first scan," explains Christoffer Knuth.

The twelve Hypselosaurus eggs are now back on display at the Evolution Museum, which officially opened in June 2023 in Knuthenborg Safari Park. At the Evolution Museum, visitors can also see genuine skeletons of other large dinosaurs such as Allosaurus, Triceratops, and the world's largest dinosaur skull, showcased in a modern light, sound, and scent installation.

Facts: The 12 Rare Dinosaur Eggs

• The dinosaur eggs were found in France and belong to a Hypselosaurus, a long-neck dinosaur that lived 70 million years ago.
• A Hypselosaurus egg is elongated and measures about 30 cm in length.
• An adult Hypselosaurus was about 12 meters long and weighed 7-14 tons.