Palaeontol-ogists claim to have revealed the secret behind the “killer smile” of Tyrannosaurus rex, huge meat-eating dinosaurs which roamed the Earth during the Cretaceous period some 65-million-years-ago.
Until recently, researchers who studied the carnivore dinosaur’s smile only noted the varying sizes of its fearsome flesh-ripping, bone-crushing teeth.
Now, a team at the University of Alberta has discovered that beyond the obvious size difference in each tooth family in T rex’s gaping jaw, there is considerable variation in the serrated edges of the teeth.
“The varying edges, or keels, not only enabled T rex’s very strong teeth to cut through flesh and bone. The placement and angle of the teeth also directed food into its mouth,” team leader Miriam Reichel said.
The palaeontologists analysed the teeth of the entire tyrannosaurid family of meat-eating dinosaurs and found T rex had the greatest variation in tooth morphology or structure. The dental specialisation was a great benefit for a dinosaur whose preoccupation was ripping other dinosaurs apart.
Their research showed that the T rex’s front teeth gripped and pulled, while the teeth along the side of the jaw punctured and tore flesh. The teeth at the back of the mouth did double duty — not only could they slice and dice chunks of prey, they forced food to the back of the throat.