Rivers of rock and gas froze ancient animals in time
Well-preserved Cretaceous fossils buried in Chinese formations by pyroclastic flows
![](https://i0.wp.com/www.sciencenews.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/gp_preserved-dinos_free.jpg?fit=860%2C460&ssl=1)
SKELETAL STORY An antelope-sized Psittacosaurus dinosaur (left) and two crow-sized Confuciusornis bird fossils (center and right) show postures common among entombed animals, suggesting the creatures perished in a sudden flow of volcanic rock and gas.
Baoyu Jiang