美国加州大学伯克利分校Charles R. Marshall等研究人员计算出霸王龙的绝对丰度和保存率。相关论文于2021年4月16日发表于国际学术期刊《科学》。

研究人员使用种群密度与生物物种体重之间的关系，并结合对霸王龙的丰富认知，从而计算出幼年霸王龙的种群变量和保存率。研究人员估计，它在任何时候的种群数量约为20,000只，可以持续存在约127,000代，并且曾经生活的霸王龙总数约为25亿只，化石的留存率为每8000万中有1只，或者在化石最丰富的地区为每16000中有1只。这些值的不确定性跨度在两个数量级以上，这在很大程度上是由于密度-质量关系的变化，而不是古生物学输入变量的变化。

据悉，尽管仅从化石中就可以得出很多结论，但估计灭绝物种的丰度和保存率需要来自活物种的数据。

附：英文原文

Title: Absolute abundance and preservation rate of Tyrannosaurus rex

Author: Charles R. Marshall, Daniel V. Latorre, Connor J. Wilson, Tanner M. Frank, Katherine M. Magoulick, Joshua B. Zimmt, Ashley W. Poust

Issue&Volume: 2021/04/16

Abstract: Although much can be deduced from fossils alone, estimating abundance and preservation rates of extinct species requires data from living species. Here, we use the relationship between population density and body mass among living species combined with our substantial knowledge of Tyrannosaurus rex to calculate population variables and preservation rates for postjuvenile T. rex. We estimate that its abundance at any one time was ~20,000 individuals, that it persisted for ~127,000 generations, and that the total number of T. rex that ever lived was ~2.5 billion individuals, with a fossil recovery rate of 1 per ~80 million individuals or 1 per 16,000 individuals where its fossils are most abundant. The uncertainties in these values span more than two orders of magnitude, largely because of the variance in the density–body mass relationship rather than variance in the paleobiological input variables.

DOI: 10.1126/science.abc8300

Source: https://science.sciencemag.org/content/372/6539/284