Scientists Declare Exploding Dinosaur Hypothesis False After Measuring Putrefaction Gases in 100 Human Corpses

Posted on March 29, 2012

The 182 million year old fossil of a pregnant ichthyosaur female from Holzmaden (Germany) has puzzled researchers for quite some time. The very well preserved fossilized bones of the extinct marine reptile lie largely in their anatomical position. However, the bones of the ichthyosaur embryos lie scattered outside the body of the mother.

These peculiar bone arrangements have been repeatedly found in ichthyosaur skeletons. This led to a hypothesis of an exploding carcass, where putrefaction gases produced during the decomposition process caused the carcass to swell and burst. The bones of embryos are then ejected out of the mother ichthyosaur's body.

A research team of sedimentologists, paleontologists and forensic scientists are offering a new theory to explain the presentation of ichthyosaur fossils.

In order to measure the pressure of gases that can actually develop inside a putrefying ichthyosaur, the researchers sought comparative models and found one in human corpses. 100 human corpses were used for the study. Humans and many ichthyosaur species have a similar size range, so the formation of similar amounts of putrefaction gas can be expected during decomposition.

At the Institute of Forensic Medicine in Frankfurt, Germany, a manometer was inserted into the abdominal cavity through the umbilicus in each human corpse. The putrefaction gas pressures measured were only 0.035 bar. In the case of the ichthyosaur carcasses that came to rest below 50 to 150 meters of water, putrefaction gas pressures of over five to 15 bar would have been necessary to cause an explosion.

Zurich paleontologist Christian Klug says gas pressures of this dimension and therefore actual explosions are impossible. Klug says, "Large vertebrates that decompose cannot act as natural explosive charges. Our results can be extended to lung-breathing vertebrates in general."



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