In Depth Taking up half of its total body length, Tanystropheus’s neck is almost inconceivable. Indeed, when Francesco Bassani discovered Tanystropheus remains in 1886 (although he named it Tribelesodon), he conceived the extra long neck vertebrae as the wing bones of a pterosaur. It was not until later that the mistake was realised and Tribelesodon … Read more
In Depth Zygorhiza belongs to the same group of primitive prehistoric whales as Dorudon and both of these whales are more distantly related to the massive Basilosaurus which was quite possibly a predator of both of these whales. Although similar in form to Basilosaurus, Zygorhiza had a much smaller body that was actually more in … Read more
In Depth Although similar to Casea, Cotylorhynchus was considerably larger and at six meters long, represents the largest known caseid pelycosaur. This large size was its best defence against the known predators of the time which were all much smaller than Cotylorhynchus, even the largest example of the fearsome Dimetrodon was still only half its … Read more
In Depth Tawa is yet another dinosaur genus from the late Triassic of the Ghost Ranch North America, and as you might expect, one quite primitive in form. Tawa were bipedal dinosaurs of the theropod line, noted for having femurs that were proportionately quite long when compared to the lower leg bones. Tawa also had … Read more
In Depth Comahuesaurus was is genus of rebbachisaurid sauropod that lived in South America during the early Cretaceous. As a rebacchiosauird, Comahuesaurus would be related to genera such as Zapalasaurus, Rebbachisaurus and Rayososaurus. Further Reading - A new basal rebbachisaurid (Sauropoda, Diplodocoidea) from the Early Cretaceous of the Neuqu�n Basin; evolution and biogeography of the … Read more
In Depth The partially preserved skull of Cuspicephalus was first recovered in 2009 by Steve Etches, and is preserved on a slab of stone. Although incomplete the feature that stands out most at first glance is the enlarged nasoantorbital fenestra (the opening that would be in front of the eye socket) that is greater than … Read more
In Depth If the name Targaryendraco sounds like something out of the television series Game of Thrones (or the A Song of Ice and Fire novel series), then you are actually right. The name of this pterosaur actually means ‘Targaryen dragon’, a reference to the house of Targaryen from A Song of Ice and Fire/Game … Read more
In Depth Norellius is a genus of gekkonomorph that lived in Mongolia during the early Cretaceous. Further Reading - Naming and rediagnosing the Cretaceous gekkonomorph (Reptilia, Squamata) from ��sh (�v�rkhangai, Mongolia). - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 35(5):e980891:1-5. - J. L. Conrad & J. D. Daza - 2015.
In Depth Although Leptolepis may just be a little unremarkable looking fish, it is important as it is the first true bony fish that is known in the fossil record. Its predecessors had cartilagninous skeletons meaning they would only preserve when conditions were absolutely right. There are several deposits that show large numbers of Leptolepis … Read more
In Depth Beibeilong is a genus of oviraptorid dinosaur that lived in Asia during the earlier stages of the late Cretaceous. The genus was described from fossilised embryos and eggs. Adult details including maximum size of Beibeilong are unknown at the time of writing, but the original describers of the genus speculated that when fully … Read more