Were Dinosaurs Warm-Blooded After All?

Were Dinosaurs Warm-Blooded After All?

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The long-standing belief that dinosaurs were cold-blooded may have been premature, if new research into herbivorous mammals is anything to go by, potentially overturning dino theory. Dinosaurs had long been assumed cold-blooded because bone microstructures identified in fossilized remains showed portions of slowed development also seen in lizards and crocodiles today. However, a new study has discovered that same pattern in warm-blooded animals.

The study, published in Nature this week, suggests that slowing down body development is a method of energy conservation shared by warm- and cold-blooded animals, implemented when conditions become harsh.