In Depth Falcarius is a transitory species of therizinosaur that marks the change from meat eating to plant eating behaviour. Falcarius is considered by some to have eaten both making it an omnivore, although the leaf shaped teeth seem to be more suited to a herbivorous diet. Further Reading – A primitive therizinosauroid dinosaur from … Read more
In Depth Teyumbaita is a genus of rhynchosaur that lived in South America during the late Triassic. Further Reading - Cranial anatomy of a new genus of hyperodapedontine rhynchosaur (Diapsida, Archosauromorpha) from the Upper Triassic of southern Brazil. - Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 101:27-52. - F. C. Montefeltro, … Read more
In Depth Draconyx is a genus of ornithischian dinosaur that lived in Portugal during the late Jurassic. Although the currently available fossils don’t reveal the whole skeleton, Draconyx still seems to have been similar to Camptosaurus, albeit a little smaller. Further Reading - Draconyx loureiroi, a new camptosauridae (Dinosauria, Ornithopoda) from the Late Jurassic of … Read more
In Depth Isaberrysaura is a genus of dinosaur that lived in South America during the middle Jurassic. Initially described as a neoornithischian, later analysis has suggested that Isaberrysaura is actually a very primitive stegosaur. Although much detail about Isaberrysaura is still unknown, it is possible that Isaberrysaura may have still been bipedal despite being a … Read more
In Depth Qianichthyosaurus is an example of a transitional ichthyosaur similar to Mixosaurus that shows a link between the more primitive ichthyosaurs and the more fish-like advanced forms. One clue to this are the limbs (flippers) which have four digits instead of the more common five which are seen in more primitive ichthyosaur forms. However … Read more
In Depth Although it seems to have lived towards the end of the Jurassic, Suuwassea appears to have been a basal diplodocid sauropod dinosaur that was more primitive in form than other better known sauropods such as Diplodocus and Apatosaurus. This would make Suuwassea a late surviving form. At an estimated length approaching fifteen meters, … Read more
In Depth Euclastes is a genus of marine cryptodiran turtle that lived from the late cretaceous to the early Paleocene. Euclastes is noted for having a partial secondary palate, and a mouth suited for crushing the shells of armoured animals such as crustaceans and shelled molluscs. A former species, E. hutchisoni, has now been reassigned … Read more
In Depth Because the skull of Westphaliasaurus is so far unknown it is impossible to say for certain what the diet of Westphaliasaurus was. However most of the early Jurassic plesiosaurs were dedicated hunters of fish and possibly also squid, prey animals that would become a staple part of the diets of plesiosaurs throughout the … Read more
In Depth Hydrotherosaurus is comfortably placed within the Elasmosauridae, a group of plesiosaurs noted for having proportionately long necks. Also like these other genera, Hydrotherosaurus had long pointed teeth, but these seem to have projected more to the sides rather than just up and down. This however is quite a common feature seen in piscivorous … Read more
In Depth Liaochelys is a genus of cryptodiran turtle that lived in China during the early Cretaceous. Further Reading - A new eucryptodiran turtle from the Early Cretaceous Jiufotang Formation of western Liaoning, China. - Zootaxa 2676:45-56. - C. -F. Zhou - 2010.