A study showed that dinosaurs were not smarter than apes Sciences

You Dinosaurs were not as intelligent as previously thought Although their intelligence is comparable to that of large reptiles, it is in no way comparable to that of apes.

This was the conclusion reached by an international team of researchers, which contradicts a previous study, published last year, which stated that Tyrannosaurus rex had an exceptionally large number of neurons. This was supposed to have a direct relationship to their intelligence, and they compared some of their habits to those of monkeys.

Fossil and neurological evaluation

An international team of researchers from paleontology, behavioral sciences and neuroscience re-examined the size and structure of the brain in different dinosaurs and concluded that It behaves in a similar way to crocodiles and lizards.

Researchers from the British Universities of Bristol and Southampton, Heinrich Heine (Germany), Alberta, the Royal Ontario Museum – both in Canada – and the Catalan Institute of Paleontology Miquel Crosafont (ICP) participated in the new work. The research results were published in the scientific journal The Anatomical Record.

In the previous study published last year, researchers said: The large number of neurons had a direct relationship to the intelligence of dinosaurs. They also cited the cultural transmission of knowledge or the use of tools as examples of the cognitive properties these types can offer.

Number of new neurons

However, the researchers closely examined the techniques used to estimate dinosaur brain size and number of neurons, and concluded that their conclusions were not reliable.

Over the past few decades, paleontologists and biologists have examined the size and anatomy of dinosaur brains and used this data to infer their behavior and lifestyle.

The research team concluded that The size of the brain, especially the frontal part, has been overestimated in previous studies Hence also the number of neurons, concluding that estimates of the number of neurons are not a reliable indicator of the intelligence of these animals.

In the new article, the team of scientists argues that in order to robustly reconstruct the biology of extinct species, it is necessary to analyze various aspects, such as their skeletal anatomy, bone tissue, and the behavior of current relatives or fossilized remains.

‘Remarkable’ dinosaur intelligence

“To determine the intelligence of dinosaurs and other extinct animals, it is necessary to integrate different pieces of evidence, ranging from general anatomy to fossil footprints, and not just focus on estimates of the number of neurons,” explained Hadi George, from the school. Bristol University of the Humanities.

Neuron numbers “are not good predictors of cognitive performance, and using them to predict intelligence in extinct species can lead to very misleading interpretations,” said researcher Ornella Bertrand, from the Catalan Institute of Paleontology Miquel Crosafont.

Darren Naish (University of Southampton) concluded: “The possibility that T. rex could be as intelligent as a baboon is both fascinating and frightening and means reshaping our view of the past.” She emphasized that the new data “challenges this idea” – they were more like giant intelligent crocodiles, which is equally remarkable.