In Depth Described from remains that were recovered from a bone bed, Xenoceratops was labelled by some writers as the ancestor to the world famous Triceratops. In actuality however Xenoceratops is considered to be a member of the centrosaurinae, one of the two main groups of ceratopsian dinosaurs that include the small frilled but large/many … Read more
In Depth Archaeornithoides has proven to be a problematic genus since it has been very difficult to ascertain exactly what it was. Only known from partial paired maxilla and dentaries, Archaeornithoides was first considered to be a primitive bird because of what were considered distinct bird-like features. Later discoveries however proved that these distinct bird … Read more
In Depth Originally named as Elaphrosaurus gautieri in 1960, a 2004 analysis of the remains by P. C. Sereno, J. A. Wilson and J. L. Conrad concluded that they belonged to a different genus of dinosaur. Hence forth this fossil material now goes by the name of Spinostropheus based upon the shape of the vertebrae, … Read more
In Depth Goyocephale was a mid-sized genus of pachycephalosaurid dinosaur that is known to have lived in what is now Mongolia during the Cretaceous. Goyocephale is noted for having a flat skull as opposed to a more ornate dome which is characteristic of other genera such as Pachycephalosaurus and Prenocephale. This could indicate that the … Read more
In Depth Magyarosaurus is considered the smallest titanosaur, and is regarded as a fine example of insular dwarfism. This is where animals that live in an area of limited size, such as an island, grow smaller so as not to use up the available food supply. Although some have made the suggestion that Magyarosaurus specimens … Read more
In Depth Oksoko is a genus of oviraptorid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the late Cretaceous. Further reading - A new two-fingered dinosaur sheds light on the radiation of Oviraptorosauria. - Royal Society Open Science. 7 (10): 201184. - G. F. Funston, C. Tsogtbaatar, K. Tsogtbaatar, Y. Kobayashi, C. Sullivan & P. J. Currie … Read more
In Depth Ahshislepelta is a genus of ankylosaurid dinosaur that lived in North America during the late Cretaceous. Unfortunately the partial remains of Ahshislepelta which include a shoulder girdle, partial left forelimb, vertebrae and osteoderms (the bony armour) are not enough to identify the genus as either a general ankylosaurid or a more derived ankylosaurine. … Read more
In Depth The Valdosaurus holotype fossils of two thigh bones (femurs) were first recovered in 1848 but thought to represent Iguanodon, and eventually being thought to be fossils of Hypsilophodon. Skip forward over a hundred years later and palaeontologist Peter M. Galton used the two thigh bones to establish a new species of Dryosaurus, D. … Read more
In Depth Although based only upon the description of the braincase, it has been enough to not only identify Nebulasaurus as a new eusauropod dinosaur, but also further hints that during the middle Jurassic Asia had a very diverse range of sauropod dinosaurs. By the late Jurassic this diverse range seems to have thinned out … Read more
In Depth Originally attributed as juvenile Saurornithoides mongoliensis, the partial left hind limb of this troodontid was firmly established as being of a different genus thanks to an osteohistological analysis of the bone. This revealed that the fossils were closer to Linhevenator tani, yet the team studying the remains concluded that while similar, the remains … Read more