A man found a 70 million-year-old dinosaur fossil, but kept it secret for two years

• A man in France found a huge dinosaur skeleton while walking his dog.

• The titanosaur skeleton is approximately 70% complete and has been kept secret to preserve the site.

• Discovery he have It sparked a career change for the man who found it.

A man found a 70 million-year-old fossil while walking his dog, but he and local archaeologists kept it a secret for two years over fears vandals would tamper with the find.

Damien Bocheteau, 25, made the discovery in Montolier, Hérault, France, about two years ago. Newsweek mentioned.

The newspaper reported that Bochetto informed the Cultural, Archaeological and Paleontological Society of this discovery in the nearby town of Croze.

The group determined the fossil to be a nearly complete fossilized titanosaur measuring 30 feet long.

While paleontologists routinely excavate bones of animals that existed millions of years ago, it is extremely rare to find complete bones. Intact fossilized dinosaur skeleton. For example, One study It indicates that there are 1.7 billion Tyrannosaurus rexwhich is believed to have lived 66 to 68 million years agoBut scientists found fossilized remains of Less than 100 of them.

Titanosaurs were a subgroup of sauropods, plant-eaters with very long necks, biologists say. Encyclopedia Britannica. The massive herbivores are some of the largest known dinosaurs and lived about 150 to 66 million years ago on every continent.

Newsweek reported that researchers discovered that the titanosaur fossil discovered by Bochetto is approximately 70% complete.

“While walking the dog, a landslide on the edge of the cliff exposed different skeletal bones,” Bochetto said, according to the outlet, adding: “They were fallen bones, and therefore isolated. We realized after a few days of excavation that they were connected bones.”

Newsweek reported that Bochetto and researchers kept the discovery secret for two years to protect the site from vandals.

When researchers finish studying the bones, Bochetto's titanosaur is scheduled to go on display at the Croze Museum, which is also home to another titanosaur. A titanosaur femur was discovered in 2012.

Bochetto said Washington Post He was a fan of paleontology. Croze Museum Director Francis Vajes told the newspaper that Bochetto's volunteering at the museum over the past two years has been valuable to the museum's paleontology department.

“These discoveries are interesting from a scientific point of view because they contribute to the understanding of species and ecosystems in the Late Cretaceous of France and Europe,” Fages told the outlet.

The newspaper reported that Bochetto resigned from his job in the energy sector last September to obtain a master's degree in paleontology.

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