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Tons of Turtles

scientist have discovered some 1,800 fossilized mesa chelonia turtles from the Jurassic geological era inChina ’s northwest state of Xinjiang . designate here , a side persuasion of the site near Shanshan in Xinjiang .

Bone Bed

" This site has belike more than double the known number of individual turtleneck from the Jurassic , " said University of Tübingen turtle expert Walter Joyce . " Some of the shells were stacked up on top of one another in the rock . " Joyce supply that this pile - up is called a bone seam .

Washed Out

Some 160 million years ago , these turtles had cumulate in one of the persist waterholes during a very juiceless menses , awaiting rain ( which came too late ) . When the water make it , it came with a vengeance : a river of mud , washing the turtleneck and sediments along with it and dump them in one property , as the paleontologists read the site and its level of stone . Here , research worker Oliver Wings and Walter Joyce cut down into turtle layer .

Tough Turtle Work

Researcher Oliver Wings curve into the turtleneck layer , where he and colleagues have found 1,800 fossilized mesa chelonia turtles from the Jurassic era in Xinjiang , in China . Wings is a paleontologist and client research worker at the Museum für Naturkunde in Berlin .

In Plaster

Here , a pulley block of the turtle stratum in plaster for stabilisation .

turtle fossils found in Xinjiang in China.

turtle fossils found in Xinjiang in China.

turtle fossils found in Xinjiang in China.

turtle fossils found in Xinjiang in China.

Here, a block of the turtle layer in plaster for stabilization.

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