In Depth        A close relative of sauropod dinosaur genera such as Mendozasaurus and Futalognkosaurus, Quetecsaurus is at the time of its description one of the better known dinosaurs of its kind from the Cerro Lisandro Formation. Further Reading – A New Titanosaur (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous (Cerro Lisandro Formation) of Mendoza Province, Argentina … Read more
In Depth        Fossils of Abditosaurus were originally discovered in†‬1954†‬and then described in†‬1956†‬as belonging to Hypselosaurus.†‬Further study later in the twentieth century however began to see the Hypselosaurus†‬genus†‬as a dubious one,†‬and many fossils that were assigned to new genera.†‬A fresh expedition to the†‬1954†‬discovery site between†… Read more
The Discovery†and ‬Naming of Tylosaurus        The discovery of Tylosaurus harks back to the†‘‬bone wars‒‬,†‬a fierce rivalry between the palaeontologists Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh that took place towards the end of the nineteenth century.†‬As such the naming history of Tylosaurus is muddled and can cause confusion to those who … Read more
In Depth        Although Acherontisuchus was named upon the basis of four specimens,†‬there is the possibility that these remains may be all from the same individual.†‬Acherontisuchus were dyrosaurid crocodiles that inhabited the rivers and water†‬systems of Colombia.†‬Acherontisuchus grew quite a bit bigger than other dyrosaurid crocodiles,†‬and although long-snouted,†‬also differed by … Read more
In Depth        †‬There are a great number of known thalattosuchian†(‬a.k.a.†‬sea crocodilesâ€) ‬genera known to us,†‬and amongst these it is the species of the Machimosaurus genus that are amongst the largest known to us.†‬The largest skulls of Machimosaurus have been confirmed to be over one and a half meters in length,†… Read more
In Depth Further Reading Further reading- Ancient DNA evidence for the loss of a highly divergent brown bear clade during historical times. – Molecular Ecology 17 (8): 1962–1970. S. Calvignac, S. Hughes, C. Tougard, J. Michaux, M. Thevenot, M. Philippe, W. Hamdine & C. Hanni – 2008.
In Depth        Jianianhualong is a genus of troodontind dinosaur that lived in China during†‬the early Cretaceous.†‬The holotype individual†‬has an†‬almost perfect state of preservation in the skeleton,†‬and while some bones are not too clearly distinguished,†‬the only significant thing missing from it is the tip of the tail.†‬The whole animal … Read more
In Depth        Yunmenglong is a genus of somphospondylin sauropod dinosaur that lived in China during the early Cretaceous.†‬Although the skeleton of the holotype is incomplete,†‬Yunmenglong is considered to have been related to other genera such as Erketu and Qiaowanlong. Further Reading A new sauropod dinosaur†(‬Dinosauria,†‬Sauropodaâ€) ‬from the late Early Cretaceous of … Read more
In Depth        Bisticeratops is a genus of chasmosaurine ceratopsian dinosaur that lived in North America during the late Cretaceous.†‬First named from only a skull,†‬Bisticeratops seems to have been quite typical of the chasmosaurine ceratopsians. Further Reading -†‬A new chasmosaurine ceratopsid from the Upper Cretaceous†(‬Campanianâ€) ‬Farmington Member of the Kirtland Formation,†‬New … Read more
In Depth        To begin we’ll address the on-going confusion between the validity of the names Paraceratherium,†‬Indricotherium and Baluchitherium.†‬These are all separate genera’s established as homes for fossil material belonging to huge terrestrial mammals that are very similar to one another in form.†‬In fact they are so similar that many palaeontologists consider them … Read more