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Scientists feasting on the contents of a tyrannosaur tummy

Alberta fossil reveals new details about the diet of young meat-eating dinosaur
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Curator of dinosaur paleoecology at the Royal Tyrrell Museum, François Therrien, right, and University of Calgary assistant professor Darla Zelenitsky stand next to a young specimen of a dinosaur called Gorgosaurus libratus in an undated handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/HO-Royal Tyrrell Museum of Paleontology

A dinosaur fossil found in the Alberta badlands has revealed new details about the diet of young meat-eating tyrannosaurs.

The research, published Friday in the journal Science Advances, is based on a well-preserved Gorgosaurus libratus specimen discovered in 2009 by a technician from the Royal Tyrrell Museum in Drumheller, Alta.

“We describe the first tyrannosaur skeleton found with prey items preserved inside the stomach,” Darla Zelenitsky, an associate professor in the department of earth, energy and environment at the University of Calgary, said in an interview.

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