In Depth A member of the Silesauridae (and hence relative of Silesaurus), Sacisaurus was a late Triassic dinosauriform from South America. Although much of the skeleton of Sacisaurus is still unknown, the parts which have been recovered and studied have revealed traits that are similar to ornithischian dinosaurs. Better known as ‘bird hipped’ dinosaurs, ornithischians … Read more
In Depth Honghesaurus is a genus of pachypleurosaur that lived during the Middle Triassic. Further Reading - A long-tailed marine reptile from China provides new insights into the Middle Triassic pachypleurosaur radiation. - Scientific Reports. 12 (1) - Guang-Hui Xu, Yi Ren, Li-Jun Zhao, Jun-Ling Liao & Dong-Hao Feng - 2022.
In Depth To start with the discovery, fossil specimens that would be raised as Richardoestesia where actually described as belonging to the type species of another dinosaur named Chirostenotes. Study in the 1980‘s however yielded the revelation that Chirostenotes was an oviraptorid, which means that the more classic theropod jaws and teeth could not possibly … Read more
In Depth A relative to genera such as Bolosaurus and Belebey, Eudibamus was a small bipedal reptile that lived in Germany during the Permian. Further Reading - Early Permian Bipedal Reptile. - Science 290:969-972. - D. S. Berman, R. R. Reisz, D. Scott, A. C. Henrici, S. S. Sumida & T. Martens - 2000.
In Depth Named after the Gobi Desert, Gobiceratops seems to have been a small bagaceratopsid ceratopsian, though since the genus is only known from a juveniles skull, the full adult size is uncertain. Despite this, Gobiceratops may have been a close relative of Bagaceratops. Further Reading - The tiny horned dinosaur Gobiceratops minutus gen. et … Read more
In Depth At the time of its description, Mymoorapelta was the first Jurassic aged ankylosaur to be discovered in North America. Since this description however, other have questioned exactly what kind of ankylosaur Mymoorapelta was. Mymoorapelta does not have a tail club like ankylosaurids, meaning that it was more likely a nodosaur. The original describers … Read more
In Depth Like all other thalattosaurs, Concavispina was a quadrupedal marine reptile that lived on coastlines and hunted in the ocean for its food. Propulsion in the water was provided by undulating its laterally compressed tail in a side to side motion rather than relying upon paddling with the limbs. Concavispina is noted for having … Read more
In Depth Gasosaurus was named in honour of the gasoline company that found the Lower Shaximiao Formation, then known as the Dashanpu fossil quarry. Since its naming Gasosaurus has been the subject of uncertainty regarding its validity and position. There have been claims that it may the same as a slightly older genus called Kaijiangosaurus … Read more
In Depth Protoichthyosaurus is a genus of small ichthyosaur that lived during the early Jurassic, though possibly also in the Late Triassic. Further Reading - The affinities of Liassic and later ichthyosaurs. Palaeontology 22(4):921-946. - R. M. Appleby - 1979. - The taxonomic utility of forefin morphology in Lower Jurassic ichthyosaurs: Protoichthyosaurus and Ichthyosaurus. - … Read more
In Depth Gongxianosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur known to have lived in China towards the end of early Jurassic. When compared to other early sauropods, Gongxianosaurus is generally thought to be fairly intermediate in development, being more advanced than genera such as Melanorosaurus and Antetonitrus, but not as advanced as genera such as … Read more