A new study of a prehistoric fossil discovery in China lends credibility to the theory that dinosaurs were good parents.
The study, published in Geosciences Journal and reported in Nature World News, outlined the parenting styles of a reptile from the Middle Jurassic, called Philydrosauras, noting they were caring parents. The fossils could be the oldest record of such care ever found.
The fossils outlined the remains of a semi-aquatic dinosaur that lived about 160 million years ago in the Jurassic period.
Researchers from the University of Lincoln, along with colleagues from China and Japan, studied the remains and from them drew their conclusions.
Charles Deeming, who led the work at the University of Lincoln, said that the young dinosaurs all appeared to be from the same clutch, living with a parent.
Today's reptiles like crocodiles protect their young from potential predators, and birds provide protection and food to their young.
But though this post-prenatal care appears to have evolved in numerous vertebrates, records of parenting behavior are relatively uncommon in dinosaurs.
It was only previously reported for two types of dinosaurs and varanopid pelycosaurs - a reptile which resembled a monitor lizard.
The fossils, which were found by a farmer in Yixian in the western Liaoning Province of China, included an adult surrounded by six smaller juveniles. This suggests the dinosaurs were living as a family at the time of their death.
By comparison, most modern reptiles leave the youngsters to fend for themselves once they hatch.
While the discovery of the fossils was made four years ago, it took the team four years to assemble the findings into a cohesive report.
