In Depth Telmatosaurus was originally named as Limnosaurus transsylvanicus, however after this naming in transpired that the genus name Limnosaurus had already been used by the American palaeontologist Othniel Charles Marsh to name a crocodile (later it would actually be declared a synonym of Pristichampsus). The original name came about from the popular idea of … Read more
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 The holotype specimen of Bergamodactylus was first described as a juvenile of the genus Eudimorphodon in 1978. A new study published in 2015 by Kellner revealed that this specimen was actually different enough from Eudimorphodon to warrant its own genus, hence the creation of Bergamodactylus. With a wingspan estimate of the holotype at … 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 Unfortunately because a portion of the neck vertebra is the only known fossil of Aralazhdarcho, not a lot can be said about the living creature. As you may have figured out for yourselves the name Aralazhdarcho is in reference to the Aral Sea, combined with the genus Azhdarcho, the genus that led to … 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 Often misidentified as an early dinosaur, Euparkeria is still sometimes hailed as the ancestor to dinosaurs. However this is a slight misnomer because while Euparkeria represents the form that the dinosaurs probably evolved from, there is no evidence to suggest that Euparkeria itself was ‘the’ ancestor. Euparkeria itself is placed within the Archosauromorpha, … Read more