T. rex had lips, concludes a study that shakes up our perceptions

Animals like T. rex and velociraptors, the theropod dinosaurs, most likely had some kind of lips, soft tissue covering their mouths to protect their teethexplains to Agence France-Presse Thomas Cullen, one of the authors of this study published in the journal Science (New window). (in English)

This is a change from many assumptions so far which were that they looked more like crocodiles, with teeth showing when their mouth was closed and no lips.adds this professor of paleobiology at Auburn University in Alabama.

We are talking about thin lips, similar to those of lizards or Komodo dragonssays one of the co-authors of the study, Derek Larson, researcher and manager of the paleontology collection at the Royal British Columbia Museum.

« With the dissemination of these results through the scientific community and the public, I think we will see our representations of T. rex change in the future. »

— A quote from Derek Larson, Royal British Columbia Museum

If the question is not completely settled, the researchers studied, from 2014, a panel of theropods from several museums to arrive at this new conclusion.

For example, they compared the wear of the enamel of the teeth of dinosaurs and crocodiles, the living animals closest to these theropods.

tooth enamel must stay hydrated to stay healthydetails Thomas Cullen. If exposed to air for too long, it becomes crumbly and more likely to crack or catch disease.

According to the paleobiologist, the enamel on the outer part of the teeth of living crocodiles wears out faster than that on the inner part because they have no lips.

When we looked at the enamel thickness on the inside and outside of the teeth of large tyrannosaurs, they didn’t exhibit this type of crocodile-like configuration.he continues.

They feature a model closer to animals with lipssays Thomas Cullen. The thickness of their enamel is the same on the outer and inner sides.

Derek Larson says the color of dinosaur lips and skin is still being researched.

Photo : Mark P. Witton

The researchers also wanted to know if the teeth of the T. rex could have been simply too big for their mouths, comparing them to many modern lizards with lips.

Some monitor lizards today have absolutely huge teethsaid Mr. Cullen. It seems almost unbelievable that these teeth could be totally covered by lips and yet they are..

And we found out that […] this scale ratio is almost identical for theropod dinosaurs.

When perceptions change

After studying the lifestyles and evolution of dinosaurs, we began to focus more and more on their appearance. Other methods will no doubt be able to cross-check these already fairly solid results.says paleontologist François Therrien of the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Alberta.

1990, the game changed”,”text”:”It was difficult, for example, to imagine that certain dinosaurs had feathers, and yet. Since the first discoveries of feathered dinosaurs in the 1990s, the game has changed””>It was hard, for example, to imagine that some dinosaurs had feathers, and yet. Since the first discoveries of feathered dinosaurs in the 1990s, the game has changedhe said.

What are the consequences for the representation of T. rex and velociraptors in popular culture?

If Thomas Cullen recognizes that the films jurassic park They succeeded to stick to what was known about dinosaurs at the timeattempts to represent theropods in a way faithful have completely derailed sinceaccording to him.

With information from Agence France-Presse