In Depth Tanytrachelos is a genus of tanystropheiid reptile (relative of Tanystropheus) that lived during the Late Triassic. There is speculation that Tanytrachelos may be synonymous with the genus Gwyneddosaurus, and usually this would mean Tanytrachelos would be renamed as Gwyneddosaurus since this genus was named before Tanytrachelos. However since Gwyneddosaurus is based upon very … Read more
In Depth Zhejiangopterus belongs to the Azhdarchidae group of pterosuars, the same group that includes the huge Quetzalcoatlus. With the large number of fossils of Zhejiangopterus discovered, it is one of the better represented of all the azhdarchids. Initially thought to have had a 5 meter wingspan, study of available fossil material has called for … Read more
In Depth Also known as the Zechstein shark, Wodnika appears to have been very much like a modern day bullshark. In life Wodnika was a small shark that would have swam in the Zechstein Sea that covered much of northern Europe, where Wodnika likely patrolled near the bottom looking for prey like crustaceans. When found … Read more
In Depth Perhaps the most note worthy things about Tianyulong is the presence of a row of large filament structures about 6 centimetres tall and believed to have been protofeathers that ran along the neck and back. These were likely for display, but here the function of the feathers is not as important as the … Read more
In Depth Haikouichthys is one of the earliest fish discovered and by extension, earliest vertebrates. At the time of the discovery the first fish were thought to have evolved 50 million years later. Haikouichthys had between six to nine girls, and what appears to be a notochord. A dorsal fin runs almost the entire length … Read more
In Depth Liaoningornis was one of the first of the constantly expanded number of Mesozoic bird genera discovered in China’s Liaoning province, and although the remains are very incomplete, they indicate a fairly more advanced form than other early Cretaceous bird genera. The sternum (breast bone) of Liaoningornis is deeply keeled to allow for the … Read more
In Depth Australobarbarus is a genus of dicynodont therapsid that lived in Russia during the Late Permian. Further Reading - New dicynodonts from the Upper Permian of the Vyatka Basin. - Paleontological Journal 34(2):S203-S210. - A. A. Kurkin - 2000.
In Depth Struthiocephalus is known from a fairly large number of individuals that represent various life stages and sexes, though originally these were broken up into distinct genera on the mistaken idea that the different growth stages and sexual dimorphism between specimens represented traits of different genera. What can be said about Struthiocephalus now is … Read more
In Depth Achillesaurus has been identified as a basal alvarezsaur that lived in Argentina during the late Cretaceous, but there is now some question to its validity. Achillesaurus was thought to have lived alongside the type genus of the alvarezsauridae, Alvarezsaurus. A 2012 study by Makovicky et al. however has raised the notion that Achillesaurus … Read more
In Depth Aquilolamna is a genus of fish confirmed to have lived in the ocean around Mexico during the late Cretaceous. The name Aquilolamna means ‘eagle shark’, a reference to the long ‘wings’ formed by the pectoral fins and the general shark-like body. However, at the time of the naming of the genus, Aquilolamna was … Read more