Maybe this is a stupid question, but how would this particular fossil have become desiccated? You think it was probably buried quickly. It was buried in sediment. To my knowledge, desiccation happens in a very dry environment. What am I missing here?
It is a bit of a problem since that area isn't thought to have been dry at the time this thing died...but what we don't know is how much
seasonal aridity took place... If this thing died during a dry spell, it could have dessicated fairly well. Why nothing munched on it is another problem I don't think we can rule out some scavenging yet. Another thing to keep in mind, it is also possible that it didn't dry substantially before it was buried. We're assuming that because it fits the model of the other hadrosaur "mummies." Might not be the case this time.
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