In Depth Occasionally interpreted as a very primitive mammal, Oligokyphus is today usually seen as a very late surviving cynodont, as well as one of the last of the non-mammalian therapsids. Still, Oligokyphus has been stated as being akin to a modern day weasel in terms of ecological niche, hunting for small animals on the … Read more
In Depth Diacodexis is an early indicator of the forms that the ungulates (hoofed mammals) evolved from, though Diacodexis may not have been ‘the’ ancestor even though it was certainly related to them. The main clue that Diacodexis is a candidate for being an ancestral form of artiodactyl is that while the feet still have … Read more
In Depth Giganotosaurus made headlines around the world when it was discovered simply for the fact that it was a carnivorous dinosaur that was bigger than Tyrannosaurus. Although the current estimate of Giganotosaurus has it approaching a length of thirteen meters, analysis of a dentary from a second individual suggests that it could grow even … Read more
In Depth Trinisaura was a fairly small ornithopod dinosaur that lived in Antarctica back before it became covered by snow and ice. Not that much can be inferred about the lifestyle of Trinisaura due to lack of more complete remains, but as a small ornithopod it probably roamed around on just its rear legs as … Read more
In Depth Macrocollum is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived in South America during the late Triassic. Further Reading - An exceptionally preserved association of complete dinosaur skeletons reveals the oldest long-necked sauropodomorphs. - Biology Letters 14:20180633:1-5. - R. T. M�ller, M. C. Langer & S. Dias-da-Silva - 2018.
In Depth Originally thought to represent a juvenile Oviraptor, Conchoraptor was established as a distinct genus in 1986. While the snout of the skull is raised like in other oviraptorids, Conchoraptor does not possess a head crest like most other known oviraptorids. Rinchen Barsbold, the palaeontologist who first described Conchoraptor speculated that Conchoraptor, and possibly … Read more
In Depth Kurmademys is a genus of side-necked turtle that lived in India during the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - Kurmademys, a new side-necked turtle (Pelomedusoides: Bothremydidae) from the Late Cretaceous of India. - American Museum Novitates 3321:1-16. - E. S. Gaffney, S. Chatterjee, & D. K. Rudra - 2001.
In Depth At the time of the genus naming in 2018, Italy was not particularly well known for dinosaur discoveries, the only other theropod being Scipionyx, named in 1998. So when it was announced that a new, much larger theropod dinosaur had been discovered, you can imagine the news headlines. Named Saltriovenator. this new dinosaur … Read more
In Depth Along with Tyrannosaurus, Allosaurus is probably the most often represented large theropod dinosaur in popular culture. This is because it was one of the earliest discovered large predators and is known from more remains than any other large predatory dinosaur. One myth about Allosaurus that does need to be dispelled is that it … Read more
In Depth Aldabrachampsus was a fairly small crocodile known to have been active around the Seychelles in the Indian Ocean during the Pleistocene period. It is believed that Aldabrachampsus came to Aldbara Atoll by migration because previously the atoll had been submerged for over one hundred thousand years. A possible source could be either Madagascar … Read more