Question

a new dinosaur
lance carson
a new duck - billed dinosaur
martha carolina aguillon martinez, a mexican paleontologist, discovered a dinosaur fossil after she had
been teaching a group of young students how to dig for bones. twelve years later, paleontologists
finished unearthing her finding, which included a complete dinosaur skull, a bony crest, and parts of a
skeleton. after examining the find, paleontologists concluded that the enormous, duck - billed crested
dinosaur was a new species. they named the dinosaur, an adolescent when it died, velafrons, which
means sailed forehead in both latin and spanish.
a strange - looking dino
velafrons had strong hind legs with three toes and smaller forearms with four fingers and no thumbs
and most likely used its long tail to maintain balance. it was a hefty creature, about the size of a
tyrannosaurus rex when fully grown, but velafrons was a herbivore and therefore not likely ferocious.
velafrons is remarkable mainly because of its strange nasal cavities. other duck - billed dinosaurs, called
hadrosaunids, have noses in front of their eyes, but velafronss nose was on its head and if it breathed
through its bony crest. paleontologists theorize that the creatures very long nasal passages gave it an
exceptional sense of smell and most likely allowed it to make musical sounds similar to a trombone.
these sounds would have been very loud, and these dinosaurs lived together in herds of hundreds, so
the noise was probably deafening.
the discoverys significance
while most duck - billed dinosaurs have been discovered in canada and asia. velafronsis is the first
created duck - billed dinosaur discovered in the united states. finding a fossil of a hadrosaurid in
mexico is especially significant since few dinosaur fossils have been discovered there - but this doesnt
mean dinosaurs did not inhabit the area. the area has little erosion so most fossils remain buried under
many feet of rock, explained stacey carver a paleontologist with mexicos natural history museum.
which best summarizes the section titled the discoverys significance?
a the discovery was significant because it allowed the paleontologist to win a major
award.
b the discovery was significant because there had never been a duck billed dinosaur
found before.
c the discovery was significant because it gave a clue about what types of dinosaurs
were in mexico.
d none of these choices accurately summarize the information and ideas shared in
the section titled the discoverys significance.

Explanation:

The text discusses the discovery of Velafrons, a new duck - billed dinosaur. The section "The Discovery's Significance" highlights that Velafrons is the first duck - billed dinosaur discovered in Canada and Asia. Previously, duck - billed dinosaurs had been found in the United States. This discovery expands the known geographical range of duck - billed dinosaurs, which is a significant aspect of paleontological research as it helps in understanding the distribution and evolution of these species.

Answer:

C. The discovery was significant because it was the first duck - billed dinosaur found in Canada and Asia (previously, duck - billed dinosaurs were mainly known from the United States, so this discovery expands the geographical range of these dinosaurs, which is important for understanding their distribution and evolution).