The Tooth is Fractured: Insights from 66 Million Years Ago
A pointed, fractured tooth is embedded in the nasal bone of an Edmontosaurus—a duck-billed dinosaur from 66 million years in the past. This tooth shard, broken off during a feeding, was abandoned by the predator, leaving a tangible trace of a long-forgotten instant in history.
This fossilized skull, belonging to an Edmontosaurus, a herbivorous hadrosaur from the Late Cretaceous, discovered alongside what has been recognized as a Tyrannosaurus’ tooth, serves more than just as an object of interest. It offers proof of the interactions between predator and prey. Designated as MOR 1627, the specimen was excavated in the Hell Creek Formation of eastern Montana in 2005.
In a 2026 article in PeerJ, doctoral candidate Taia Wyenberg-Henzler from the University of Alberta and John Scannella, curator at the Museum of the Rockies, elaborated on this extraordinary discovery. The research underscores not just the embedded tooth but also 23 other tyrannosaur bite marks on the skull, implying a systematic assault from a sizable predator.
What this fossil does not depict is any signs of healing, suggesting that the Edmontosaurus did not endure the bite. This lack of healing presents two feasible scenarios: a predatory strike that led to the Edmontosaurus’s demise or a scavenging act post-death.
The ongoing discussion regarding whether T. rex functioned mainly as a hunter or a scavenger persists, although the prevailing view indicates it was an opportunistic feeder. MOR 1627 adds to this extensive conversation, pointing to possible predation.
Despite the uncertainties, this fractured tooth provides an astonishing view into the lives of prehistoric creatures. The placement of the bite—on the face—indicates a direct encounter typical of predation, rather than merely casual scavenging. It highlights the significance of ancient interactions, encapsulated in this remnant of a distant age.