Fewer tyrannosaurs lived on Earth than previously thought
Previously estimated at 2.5 billion individuals, the total population of tyrants who lived on Earth has now been revised downwards. It would have been “only” 1.7 billion. In question, revision of some parameters taken into account in population calculations.
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Among the dinosaurs that ruled the earth, the Dinosaur rex Definitely one of the most iconic. If fossil studies of this giant predator that lived at the end of the Cretaceous (68 to 66 million years ago) bring us a lot of information about its morphology or its life habits, there is still a question. Difficult to solve.
In total, how many tyrants managed to set foot on Earth? By 2021, one study proposed a population of 2.5 billion. But this decision remains controversial. Yes, judging by the census today, this pattern did not exist in the Cretaceous. It must be remembered that the fossilization process requires certain conditions that are not necessarily met when a person dies. It is extremely rare for a fossil to form, be preserved for millions of years, and come under the care of paleontologists in good condition.
Update of calculation parameters according to new ancient discoveries
However, the fossils that have been found, although they are very few, can estimate the number of tyrannosaurs that once lived on Earth. A new study has been published Paleontology This suggests a figure of 1.7 billion individuals, or 800 million less than the previous estimate. How to explain such a decline?
Following our better understanding of the biology of tyrannosaurs by updating more realistic parameters in population calculations. Life expectancy, reproductive rate and reproductive value of individuals are thus revised. Calculations suggest that 90,000 generations of T-rex succeeded each other, each containing about 19,000 individuals. This makes the total a maximum of 1.7 billion individuals.
Interestingly, only one fossil has been found out of 52.5 million individuals, which illustrates the difficulty of the fossilization process.
