Golden Fishing Village

After getting on the boat, he went to wipe the seawater off his body. As soon as he changed his clothes, he heard Professor Yin's voice on the boat: "Xiao Ao, Xiao Ao, where are you?"

Lu Wuyi's grand voice sounded: "Professor, tell me if you have anything to do. It's the same thing."

"Is it the same? I want to ask Xiao Ao something, it's quite important."

"That's absolutely the same. Why are you asking? I know everything my brother-in-law knows."

“Where did this turtle fossil come from?”

"In the sea."

"I know the sea, I mean, that location? What else is around?"

"Only this devil knows." Ao Muyang walked out of the cabin and saw Lu Wuyi spreading his hands and looking helpless.

He slapped Lu Wuyi on the head and said dissatisfiedly: "Get out of here."

"Okay, brother-in-law." Lu Wuji responded happily.

After seeing him, Professor Yin was very happy. He took his arm and asked, "Xiao Ao, Xiao Dou and Xiao Song said you fished this fossil out of the sea?"

Ao Muyang recalled briefly, pointed in the direction ahead and said, "Yes, it was fished out from over there. I saw a turtle fossil underwater and thought it might be useful, so I fished it out..."

"Your feeling is so accurate, it works!" Professor Yin patted his thigh excitedly.

Ao Muyang felt happy and asked, "That's great, what's the use of it?"

Professor Yin said: "What I can say now is not quite accurate, because what I saw are incomplete fossils, but I can give you a rough idea. First of all, you know, whether it is a tortoise or a sea turtle, the role of the tortoise shell is It’s to protect the body, right?”

Ao Muyang nodded: "Yes."

Lu Wuji said not far away: "I know this. When a turtle encounters danger, it will shrink into its hard shell. This is called shrinking into the body. In martial arts, it is a defensive technique."

"Don't make trouble, get out."

"I didn't cause trouble, brother-in-law, I also want to learn and make progress." Lu Wuji said aggrievedly.

Professor Yin waved his hand and said, "Xiao Ao, don't treat Xiaolu with such a bad attitude."

He felt good about Lu Wuwei, so he specifically said to him: "You are wrong. Land tortoises have the habit of retracting their limbs and heads into their shells. Sea turtles cannot do that."

"That's it." Lu Wuji looked stunned.

Professor Yin continued to say to Ao Muyang: "Actually, there is speculation in the reptile community that the turtle shells evolved by primitive turtles were not used to accommodate the body and avoid natural enemies. Because two to three hundred million years ago, the ocean neutralized There are a large number of large fish and animals on land. One thing these big guys have in common is their strong bite force. The turtle shell can block the attacks of most fish and animals in the world today, but it could not block those terrifying predators at that time. By."

"So, guess what the turtle shell was originally used for?"

"Since it's not for defense, then it's for offense?" Lu Wuji guessed.

Ao Muyang was confused, how could this turtle shell be used for offense? The turtle spots its opponents, jumps up, and hits them hard with its shell?

"It's not used for offense or defense. Keep guessing what purpose they evolved this turtle shell for?" Professor Yin said with a smile, "Just a reminder, the turtle shell is indeed used to save lives."

"They can't attack or defend, so they're just auxiliary? Can they restore blood? Can they heal the same kind? Can they hide themselves?" Lu Wuji made several of the same kind in a row.

Ao Muyang reached out and wanted to slap him again. This guy would not feel comfortable unless he messed around.

After hearing his last words, the old professor slapped his thigh hard and said excitedly: "You guessed it right!"

Lu Wuji was confused: "Which one is right?"

The old professor patted him on the shoulder and said, "Good boy, I knew you were smart, and you really lived up to my expectations."

Lu Wuji quickly held his head high and looked confident, as if he had just overcome some world problem.

Ao Muyang was too lazy to pay attention to him and asked Professor Yin: "What is this turtle shell used for?"

Professor Yin said with a smile: "Didn't the little deer say it? It is used to hide itself, and the ancient turtle used it to dig holes to hide."

"Yes, it's used to hide yourself." Lu Wuji nodded decently, as if he knew very well.

Ao Muyang was drunk.

Professor Yin did not say more to him. He urged: "Xiao Ao, can you go to the sea again and look for other fossils? This thing is very precious. Once we find it, we will go back and show it to Professor Li immediately. He is the expert. ”

Ao Muyang said: "Okay, then I'll bring the tools. There are other fossils embedded in the granite on the seabed. It's not easy to remove them."

"You have to find a way to dig out the whole stone. Don't try to excavate the fossils. You have to rely on professional talents and professional tools." Professor Yin quickly warned.

Ao Muyang nodded and said, "I know this."

He found tools such as hammers, crowbars, and harpoons on the boat, and then took two PhD students with good diving skills into the sea.

The location where the fossils were found is not far from the scientific research ship, and the water is not too deep, less than thirty meters.

After they dived down, Ao Muyang found the fossil and led the two of them to start prying the stone.

In addition to the complete fossil he found at the beginning, he searched again and before the sun set, he found two more turtle fossils, but they were both incomplete.

Professor Yin was very excited when he saw these three fossils, especially the complete fossil. He even skipped dinner and immediately lay down on the stone with a magnifying glass and an atlas to study.

The scientific research ship returned early, and Lu Wuji was very happy.

Ao Muyang went to call Professor Yin to eat. The old man shook his head: "You guys eat first. When I return to the village, I will ask Old Li to treat me to a meal. He must treat me to a big meal."

"Then what did you find?"

Professor Yin smiled and said: "Yes, first of all, I read it correctly. What you happened to come across is indeed the fossil of Prototle Turtle, the ancestor of modern turtles. Do you know Prototle Turtle?"

Ao Muyang shook his head: "This is the first time I heard of it."

Professor Yin said: "Well, let me briefly introduce it to you. The original tortoise is the ancestor of modern tortoises, but it looks a little different from modern tortoises. The tortoise shell is fully formed on the ventral surface of their bodies, but only half of the carapace is on the back, and there are teeth in the mouth. , lived about 256 million years ago."

Ao Muyang asked: "The original turtle's carapace was only half at first, because it doesn't need to be whole to dig a cave, right?"

Professor Yin nodded: "That should be the case, but evolution is a very complicated process. We need rigorous research and sufficient evidence before we can draw conclusions."

"The fossils we found are very important. Their shells are larger than those of the original turtle fossils found before, and the sharp arcs are also softened. What does this mean? We have probably discovered the difference between the original turtles and modern turtles. A bridge, which is not only helpful for reptile research, but also important for evolution as a whole! ”