Trapped for 70 Million Years, Paleontologists Find Hundreds of Dinosaur Eggs from Multiple Species in One Ancient Site

Key Points:

• Paleontologists in southern France uncovered a fossil bed at the Mèze site containing hundreds of intact dinosaur eggs from at least three species, making it one of Europe's richest dinosaur nesting grounds.
• The eggs belong to titanosaurs, Rhabdodon priscus (a two-legged herbivore), and Prismatoolithus caboti (a small carnivore), indicating communal nesting and repeated use of the site by different species about 70 million years ago.
• A catastrophic flood rapidly buried the nests in fine clay marl, preserving the delicate eggshells and enabling fossilization, while the site also yielded rare skeletal remains linked directly to the eggs.
• Excavations resumed in late 2025 despite winter weather, with ongoing work expected to reveal thousands of eggs and potentially preserved embryos, offering new insights into dinosaur reproductive behavior shortly before the mass extinction.
• The Mèze site serves as both a research station and public attraction, contributing significantly to regional scientific heritage and advancing understanding of dinosaur nesting strategies and ecology during the late Cretaceous.