In Depth        Suminia is an interesting little genus of anomodont therapsid that lived in Russia during the Permian.†‬Though the mouth was full of sharp and proportionately large teeth,†‬wear patterns upon the teeth themselves indicate that they were being repeatedly used to process plant material,†‬meaning that Suminia was herbivorous.†‬The holotype specimen of … Read more
In Depth The Pachyornis genus of moa has a taxonomic history going all the way back to the early days of moa study,†‬though like with many other moa genera,†‬the first remains of Pachyornis were attributed to the Dinornis genus.†‬The Pachyornis genus was spread across virtually all of New Zealand,†‬with P.†‬australis being most common in the northern and southern regions of South Island,â€Â ‬P.†… Read more
In Depth        The describers of Guidraco classed†‬it†‬within the Pteranodontoidea†(‬the group defined by the type genus Pteranodonâ€)‬,†‬however they also found that its closest known relative was Ludodactylus which is actually a member of the Ornithocheiridae†(‬another group defined by the type genus Ornithocheirusâ€)‬.†‬These two groups of pterosaurs are closely related to … Read more
In Depth        One of many diplodocid sauropods of the Morrison Formation†(‬with other genera including Diplodocus,†‬Apatosaurus and Suuwassea amongst othersâ€)‬,†‬Dystrophaeus has been the source of a lot of confusion.†‬Edward Drinker Cope,†‬the person who first named Dystrophaeus,†‬thought that the animal belong in the much earlier Triassic period,†‬while Othniel Charles Marsh … Read more
In Depth        Hypsilophodon is one of the more famous dinosaurs that have been discovered in the Isle of Wight,†‬however its discovery was delayed by the fact that for the first twenty years of the first fossils discovery,†‬Hypsilophodon was actually believed to be a juvenile Iguanodon.†‬ This is of course in reference to … Read more
In Depth  Though not as famous as Dinornis,†‬the Megalapteryx genus is just as if not even more important to our understanding of moa birds.â€Â ‬ Megalapteryx is one of the few moa,†‬in†‬fact one of the few prehistoric animals,†‬to be known by mummified remains of soft tissue.†‬ Mummification is essentially where all moisture is drawn out of … Read more
In Depth        Ondogurvel is a genus of alvarezsaurid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the late Cretaceous. Further reading -†‬A new alvarezsaurid theropod dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of Gobi Desert,†‬Mongolia.†‬-†‬Cretaceous Research.†‬135†‬-†‬Alexander O. Averianov†& ‬Alexey V. Lopatin†‬-†‬2022.
In Depth        Delectosaurus is a species of dicynodont that lived in Russia during the Permian. Further Reading -†‬New Late Permian dicynodonts from the Vyazniki Assemblage of terrestrial tetrapods of Eastern Europe.†‬-†‬Paleontological Journal†‬35â€(‬1â€)‬:53-59.†‬-†‬A.†‬A.†‬Kurkin†‬-†‬2001.
In Depth        Besanosaurus was†‬a†‬primitive icthyosaur that lacked a dorsal fin and had a more eel-like tail rather than the fish-like tail seen in later more advanced genera.†‬The jaws were long and thin,†‬filled with small conical teeth for trapping marine organisms.†‬The eyes that were around twenty centimetres in diameter may have … Read more
In Depth        Neotrirachodon is listed as a†‬genus of gomphodont,†‬cynodont therapsid that lived in Russia during the Permian.†‬If this analysis is correct then Neotrirachodon is the first gomphosont cynodont to be discovered in Russia.†‬Neotrirachodon was originally described as a species of Antecosuchus,†‬and at times the genus has been considered by some … Read more