Auburn University Shares 82-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Egg with Public

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An 82-million-year-old dinosaur egg is currently on display at Auburn University.

According to Auburn University Museum of Natural History (AUMNH), the fossilized dinosaur egg includes an intact embryo, and is the "most complete" dinosaur specimen in the eastern United States.

The two-inch egg was washed out to sea millions of years ago. It was protected by the layers of sediment that formed around it until the 1970s, when it was discovered by a group of teens near Selma, Alabama.

Auburn University

"Over time, the egg has become lithified or transformed into stone," Jonathan Armbruster, director of AUMNH, explained in a news release. "It had a complete shell, and no one actually knew what was inside."

James Lamb from the Black Belt Museum at the University of West Alabama studied the specimen on loan from Auburn while working on his doctoral degree. He removed part of the shell that exposed the embryonic bones.

"It's very unique, and there's not another one like it. It holds great scientific value," Armbruster said. "The egg can teach us a lot of things."

Auburn University

It was unveiled on June 1 in the first-floor rotunda of the Rouse Life Sciences Building. The public display features the dinosaur egg alongside an interactive tablet so visitors can learn more about it and its history. There are even images from a CT scan that show the bones of the baby therapod inside it.

"This specimen is preserved for all time, and now anyone can learn more about it," Armbruster said.