In Depth Like with Rapator and Ozraptor, Kakuru has been named from a single bone. Also like with Raptor, the type specimen of Kakuru has been turned to opal. The exact classification of Kakuru has been hard to establish because of the lack of identifiable remains. What can be said is that Kakuru was likely … Read more
In Depth Pisanosaurus is easily one of the oldest ornithischian dinosaurs that are currently known to science. Unfortunately the holotype specimen is very fragmentary, and details such as the orientation of the pubic bone are still unknown. Despite this the basic orithopod body form can still be clearly seen, Pisanosaurus is a good indicator for … Read more
In Depth In terms of size Marshosaurus was a middle of the range theropod but one that seems built for strength. Aside from the fairly robust skull, the short but thick humerus of the arms indicates that Marshosaurus was adapted for holding onto and physically subduing its prey. A right ilium (hip bone) of Marshosaurus … Read more
In Depth Xiyunykus is a genus of alvarezsaurid dinosaur that lived in China during the early Cretaceous. In terms of alvarezsaur evolution, Xiyunykus shows an intermediate development between primitive ancestors and more developed descendents. Care should be taken not to confuse the Xiyunykus with the similarly named alvarezsaur Xixianykus. Further Reading - Two early Cretaceous … Read more
In Depth A relative of the famous Tyrannosaurus, Dynamoterror lived further south in what is now the New Mexico area of the USA. Described after a pain staking process of re-combined the partial remains of the holotype, Dynamoterror was revealed to have been a medium/large nine meter long predatory dinosaur. This is smaller than the … Read more
In Depth Of all the pterosaurs Laopteryx probably has the least amount of fossil material attributed to it, only a rear portion of the skull. When Othniel Charles Marsh named it he thought that he was actually dealing with a prehistoric bird. This thinking held true until 1986 when John Ostrom found it to be … Read more
In Depth Analysis of the Lacusovagus fossils indicates that it is a member of the Chaoyangopteridae family of pterosaurs. This is significant as it up until the discovery of Lacusovagus, the members of this group were known only from Asia. Further Reading – A new azhdarchoid pterosaur from the Crato Formation (Lower Cretaceous, Aptian?) of … Read more
In Depth Nycteroleter is the type genus of the Nycteroleteridae, and is a procolomorph anapsid that lived in Russia during the Permian. Further Reading Some New Permian Reptiles of the USSR. Comptes Rendus (Doklady) de l’Acad�mie des Sciences de l’URSS 19(9):771-776. - I. A. Efremov - 1938. - Anatomy of Emeroleter levis and the Phylogeny … Read more
In Depth The Tatankaceratops type specimen was pieced together from partial remains before it was named in 2010, and soon after there were murmurings that it was actually a juvenile Triceratops. This stems down to a 2011 study by Nicholas R. Longrich which noted a mix of juvenile and adult characteristics in the skull. Since … Read more
In Depth Mirischia is a genus of compsognathid dinosaur that lived in what is now Brazil during the early Cretaceous. Mirischia means ‘wonderful ischia’, and this dinosaur acquired this name because the two ischia (bones of the pelvis) show an oval foramen (opening) in the left bone, and a notch in the same position on … Read more