In Depth With a bulbous head, strongly arched back and dorsal fin that was so far back it sat near above the pelvic fins, Cobelodus was not a shark that was built for speed. Instead it may have cruised around near the bottom hunting for crustaceans and other invertebrates that did not require active pursuit. … Read more
In Depth Although pieced together and described from very incomplete skull material, Dracovenator has been identified as being similar to Dilophosaurus. With this in mind the 2006 description of Dracovenator saw it classified as a dilphosaurid and related to Dilophosaurus from North America, and Zupaysaurus from South America, though not all palaeontologists are convinced about … Read more
In Depth The type fossil of Bulbasaurus was originally assigned to the Tropidostoma genus of dicynodont, but later analysis revealed it to actually be distinct enough to warrant the creation of a new genus for it. The new genus name Bulbasaurus is a reference to the two boss (round bony growth) like growths of the … Read more
In Depth At first glance you might be forgiven for thinking that Miragaia is some kind of hybrid between a stegosaur and a sauropod. Well in actuality Miragaia is a stegosaur, although the long neck and long forelimbs make it quite different from classic examples such as Stegosaurus and Kentrosaurus. The most likely cause for … Read more
In Depth The description of Napaisaurus was based upon partial remains that were considered to represent an iguanodontian dinosaur. If this is correct, then Napaisaurus would be the first of its kind discovered in China. Napaisaurus would have been a mostly quadrupedal dinosaur, maybe occasionally bipedal, that browsed upon plants. Further reading - First new … Read more
Classification history and complications When Tarbosaurus fossils were first discovered many of them were actually assigned as new species to the existing tyrannosauroid genera Tyrannosaurus (T. bataar) and Gorgosaurus (G. lancinator & G. novojilovi), as well as the new genus and species, Tarbosaurus efremovi. This classification continued until 1965 when Anatoly Konstantinovich Rozhdestvensky realised that … Read more
In Depth Pantosaurus was originally described as Parasaurus, however this name had already been used to name a genus of Pareiasaur. Pantosaurus is a genus of plesiosaur that lived in North America during the late Jurassic. Pantosaurus has been noted as having a strong similarity to Muraenosaurus which is known from England and France, though … Read more
In Depth Like similar predatory birds of its day, Phorusrhacos was flightless with its wings greatly reduced in size. The wings of Phorusrhacos also had sharp hooks that seem to be more suited for gripping. These hooks have been suggested as being used to secure struggling prey as Phorusrhacos dispatched it with its beak, but … Read more
In Depth The key thing about Judiceratops is that at the time of its description it appears to be the oldest known chasmosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur. Unfortunately only an incomplete skull is known for the genus, so figures on size and a confirmed arrangement of horns and neck frill are a little tricky to establish. Judiceratops … Read more
In Depth With the exception of Triceratops, Styracosaurus is the ceratopsian dinosaur that most people are familiar with. In fact it could even be argued that Styracosaurus has had even greater exposure in popular media such as films, books and games. This popularity is all down to the very distinctive arrangement of horns that extend … Read more