Searching for dinosaur secrets in crocodile bones

By looking at thin slices of crocodile bones, University of Cape Town paleobiologist Anusuya Chinsamy-Turan has concluded that researchers may have been overestimating some dinosaur ages. "It changes how we think about dinosaur growth," she says.

Until now, estimating how old a dinosaur was when it died has been a fairly simple process: Count up the growth rings in the fossilized bones. But new research into some of dinosaurs' living relatives, like crocodiles, suggests that this method may not always work.

(Image credit: Tommy Trenchard for NPR)