An investigating into an ancient poop photographic print post researchers into the clutches of one of Earth ’s most efficient killers to answer one question : was it a pes , or a member ? The resultingcoprolitespecimen was think to have been imprinted sometime in the Eocene period ( 55.8 to 33.9 million years ago ) , but exactly what was impressed onto it before it fossilized proved to be something of a mystifier .
The Great Penis - Foot Poop Mystery is described in a paper issue inPalaeoworld , a fitting daybook title for what proved to be something of a rollercoaster of a scientific enterprise centered around a rarefied , fossilized after part specimen found among 100coprolitesfrom the Na Duong coal mine in Lang Son state , Vietnam .
“ First and foremost , we made sure it was a coprolite rather than just a opus of rock music , ” study atomic number 27 - author Dr Paul Rummy told IFLScience . “ For us it was leisurely to tell … [ but ] since we are write a scientific paper , we somehow have to demonstrate it to the audiences . ' Oh ya , that ’s not a typical rock you see , but fossilized feces ' . ”
The temper shit ’s Ca and phosphorous content present it was the fossilise droppings of a carnivore , and its shape supported the theory that it was of crocodilian origin . Add to that , that these animals have stomach back breaker strong enough to dissolve os ( none of which was found in the coprolite ) and you have yourself a pretty convincing ancient croc poop .
Crocodilians live their lives quite close to the solid ground , so it was reasonable to consider that the print in the coprolite was made by the same animal that produced it . To verify if the print add up , the researcher turn to some of Earth ’s most experient crocodilian experts : “ [ W]e take a trip to the crocodile farm , ” say Rummy .
After catch up - close - and - personal with a Siamese crocodile , the squad was able to get a facial expression at a crocodilian footmark IRL and match it up to their specimen for comparability .
“ We quantify some of the footprints produce on the ground of the crocodiles , ” explain Rummy . “ We also made cast from the manus [ stem ft ] and pes [ hind foot ] to infer the footmark creator on the coprolite is almost identical to it . We make love that the 4th and 5th finger of the mitt are barren of claws , hence you do not see any claw marks on the coprolite . ”
As for the penis hypothesis , suggest to the team by a reviewer of their paper , Rummy believes it could still be a hypothesis but would be extremely rare . How it might come about is if a male alligator were penetrating a female as she take a shit , its penis might make parallel marks like to that seen on the coprolite .
However , the female ’s muscular , multi - purpose cloacawould likely have remold the feces as it went on its merry way , making a lasting penis photographic print less potential .
The newspaper also doubt the possibleness of an ancient shark bite having created the coprolite print as bites received “ before shitting ” ( ouch ) are typically smaller than that seen in the Na Duong specimen .
Instead , the writer conclude - with the aid of an illustrated reconstructive memory — the coprolite carving was most belike crafted by the fore foot of the same crocodilian reptile that produced it . And that beyond that , it provides a uncommon and unique snapshot into the past where an ancient river or lake environment likely once survive in Na Duong , one which they hope to learn more about in the many coprolite they have yet to search .
“ We are in the mid of writing up our paper on the 100 over coprolites we retrieved from Na Duong , ” said Rummy . “ We definitely await forward to conveying an interesting narration to the World . ”
[ H / T : Atlas Obscura ]
