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Updated: Jul 11, 2026

Using a Comparative Species Approach to Investigate the Neurobiology of Paternal Responses
Published on: September 19, 2011
Palaeontology: parental care in an ornithischian dinosaur
Qingjin Meng1, Jinyuan Liu, David J Varricchio
1Dalian Natural History Museum, 40 Xicun Street, Heishijiao, Shahekou, Dalian, China.
Abstract:
Crocodilians and birds show extensive parental care of their young, but whether this behaviour evolved independently in these two groups of living archosaurs is unknown - in part because features of parenting among related fossil groups such as dinosaurs are unclear. A dramatic specimen of the small ornithischian dinosaur Psittacosaurus sp. (Dalian Natural History Museum D2156) from Liaoning in China reveals a single adult clustered with 34 juveniles within an area of 0.5 square metres, providing strong evidence for post-hatching parental care in Dinosauria.
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