Cololites of herbivorous non-avian dinosaurs: a review

Cololites, fossilized stomach or gut contents, are rare and they contain direct evidence for dietary information of ancient animals. Within herbivorous (non-avian) dinosaurs, only 10 records of putative cololites, attributed to four major groups: Sauropoda, Theropoda, Hadrosauridae (Ornithopoda) and Thyreophora, have been reported since 1909. The last meal of the individual could be revealed by studying the morphology and taxonomy of the plant materials in the colo-lites, supplemented by palynological and geochemical analyses. But in some cases, it’s hard to decide whether the plantmaterials are autochthonous or allochthonous (e.g., being brought in by flowing water), which makes interpretations controversial. Furthermore, cololites could be a potential evidence for digestive system and feeding behaviour of herbivorous dinosaurs, and their co-evolution with the Mesozoic plants. Notably, greater emphasis should be placed on the Jehol Biota and the Yanliao Biota in northeastern China, considering the exceptional preservation of the fossils. This paper reviews the research progress on putative cololites of herbivorous dinosaurs, as well as their evolutionary, paleoenvironmental and paleoecological implications.

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