In Depth Cynognathus seems to be one of the most successful of the cynodonts, with a large number of fossil remains from a wide geographic distribution being all attributed to the genus. There is however some controversy over whether all of these fossils should be labelled as Cynognathus, as the genus does seem to have … Read more
In Depth Afrotapejara is a genus of tapejarid pterosaur that lived in North Africa at the time of the Early/Late Cretaceous boundary. Further Reading - new tapejarid (Pterosauria, Azhdarchoidea) from the mid-Cretaceous Kem Kem beds of Takmout, southern Morocco. - Cretaceous Research. - David M. Martill, Roy Smith, David M. Unwin, Alexander Kao, James McPhee … Read more
In Depth Foxemys is a genus of bothremydid turtle that is considered to have been similar to Polysternon as well as closely related to Puentemys. Further Reading - Foxemys, a new side-necked turtle (Bothremydidae, Pelomedusoides) from the late Cretaceous of France. - American Museum Novitates 3251 (3251): 1–19. Retrieved 19 January 2012. - Haiyan Tong, … Read more
In Depth At the time of writing the only parts of the dinosaur Pycnonemosaurus that have been recovered include some legs and hip bones as well as caudal (tail) vertebrae and teeth. These parts however are enough to identify Pycnonemosaurus as an abelisaurid theropod dinosaur. Like with other abelisaurs, Pycnonemosaurus would be expected to have … Read more
In Depth The discovery of Morotopithecus has necessitated a rethink in our understanding of primate and ape evolution. The confusion here all stems down to the fact that fossils of Morotopithecus indicate that it was more advanced than forms such as Afropithecus and Kenyapithecus and yet it appeared well before these other genera in the … Read more
In Depth Leptopleuron was a genus or procolophonid reptile that lived in Scotland during the Late Triassic. The exact diet of Leptopleuron is uncertain, though procolophonids in the late Triassic seem to be more herbivorous than earlier procolophonids were more insectivorous. Further Reading - The braincase structure of Leptopleuron lacertinum Owen (Parareptilia: Procolophonidae). - Journal … Read more
In Depth As a nimravid, Dinictis looked and hunted like a cat, yet it hunted across North America during a much earlier period before the emergence of true cats, hence the reason why the label of ‘false sabre-toothed cat’ is often applied to Dinictis as well as the other nimravids. One key difference is the … Read more
In Depth Named in 1856 by Joseph Leidy on the description of teeth, Palaeoscincus is today considered a highly dubious genus of ankylosaur. While over the years other fossil material has been assigned to the genus, most of this material has now been reassigned to other dinosaur genera including the dinosaurs Euoplocephalus, Paranthodon and even … Read more
In Depth The one thing that immediately stands out about Dakotaraptor at first glance is simply the large size of this dromaeosaurid dinosaur. Most dromaeosaurid dinosaurs measure in at under two meters in length, with a few genera ranging between two and three meters long. The Holotype individual of Dakotaraptor however has a reconstructed length … Read more
In Depth Although discovered in a joint Mongolian and Russian dig in 1989, Achillobator did not get named until 1999. These remains are very fragmentary but do suggest that Achillobator was a particularly large dromaeosaurid dinosaur. The achilles tendons seem to have been particularly well developed, probably to account for the extra size and weight … Read more