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– It’s a paleontology premiere and one that could make you giggle. For the first time, scientists have been able to describe in detail the cloak of a dinosaur. If you’re not familiar with that part of the body, CNET translates: It’s essentially a “but-of-all-trade-butthole.” The study published Tuesday in Current biology refers to a dog-sized herbivore that lived about 120 million years ago Psittacosaurus. Scientists at the University of Bristol write that “previously it was observed that the cloacal region has been preserved”, although flattened in this fossil, found decades ago in China, but the detailed anatomy of the region had not been properly reconstructed. They succeeded in this, through a 3D model of the opening of the hole, which was used for defecation, urination, copulation and birth.
New York Times the notes “cloaca” come from the Latin word for “sewer” and is not unique to dinosaurs: Some modern birds, reptiles, amphibians and a handful of mammals have one, but, according to researchers, the cloaca is not preserved in any other fossil of non-avian dinosaur. So how does it compare to those we are familiar with? It is certainly in its own class, but it most closely resembles those seen in crocodiles and alligators. While most sewer openings, or vents, appear as slots or holes, that of Psittacosaurus it has “discrete lateral lips, but converges only anteriorly, giving the cloaca a unique V-shaped anatomy,” according to the study. These lips were strongly pigmented, indicating that they may have a signaling function, perhaps a sexual one; you may have also had musk glands. (Read more stories about discoveries.)