In Depth Parvinatator is a little known Triassic age ichthyosaur from British Columbia. The primitive form of Parvinatator reveals that it was similar to other primitive forms such as Utatsusaurus. Further Reading Further reading- A new ichthyosaur from the Triassic Sulphur Mountain formation of British Columbia. by E. Nicholls & D. Brinkman. – In, Vertebrate … Read more
In Depth Despite its appearance in dinosaur documentaries like Dinosaur Planet, not much is known about Tarascosaurus. The type material is very incomplete but has still seen this dinosaur tentatively placed within the Abelisauridae. Aside from Betasuchus, Tarascosaurus is the only representative of this group of theropod dinosaurs which were previously considered to be present … Read more
In Depth Eoneustes is a primitive genus of thalattosuchian marine crocodile that lived in European sea waters during the mid Jurassic. The Eoneustes genus was established from two former species of Teleidosaurus, T. bathonicus and T. gaudryi. Eoneustes along with Teleidosaurus were once thought to represent the oldest marine crocodiles until the 2015 naming of … Read more
In Depth The holotype specimen of Scipionyx was first discovered in 1981, though it did not garner wider attention until 1993 when its existence was announced to the wider public. It would not be until 1998 however that the genus and species name Scipionyx samniticus would be created. The holotype was discovered by amateur palaeontologist … Read more
In Depth Shuangbaisaurus is a genus of predatory dinosaur that lived in China during the start of the Jurassic period. Known from a partial skull, there is speculation that Shuangbaisaurus might be synonymous with Sinosaurus. Further Reading - A new crested theropod dinosaur from the Early Jurassic of Yunnan Province, China. - Vertebrata PalAsiatica 55(2):177-186. … Read more
In Depth Nothosaurus is representative of one of the dominant groups of marine reptiles of the Triassic, the other main group being the primitive ichthyosaurs like Cymbospondylus. The nothosaurs are often dubbed the seals of the Triassic because while they were adapted for aquatic life, they still held onto to clear terrestrial adaptations. This would … Read more
In Depth When first named in 1979, Dravidosaurus was described as a stegosaurid dinosaur, and given that the holotype was in a Coniacian of the late Cretaceous aged deposit, possibly the last stegosaur to exist. However, this claim seems to have been made prematurely, as in 1991 a palaeontologist named Sanker Chatterjee visited the site … Read more
In Depth Though Moganopterus probably does not have the largest skull of any pterosaur, it does have the largest skull of any toothed pterosaur. This size is down to the jaws being very elongated, possibly for additional reach. There were at least sixty-two teeth in the skull, though possibly more. On the back of the … Read more
In Depth The name Echinodon means ‘hedgehog tooth’, and this is because when Richard Owen first named Echinodon in 1861, he thought he was dealing with a lizard that had a similar lifestyle to a hedgehog. Later, Echinodon was often perceived to be a primitive thyreophoran dinosaur (popularly known as an armoured dinosaur), but today … Read more
In Depth Bravasaurus is a genus of titanosaurian dinosaur that lived in South America during the late Cretaceous. While many of the South American titanosaurs such as Argentinosaurus were positive giants, Bravasaurus seems to have been much smaller than most. Bravasaurus was named alongside the genus Punatitan in the same paper in 2020. Further reading … Read more