In Depth Although only known from partial remains, Tataouinea has been identified as a rebbachisaurid sauropod, and one that is closely related to genera such as Nigersaurus, which are also known to have been present in North Africa during the early Cretaceous. The fossils of Tataouinea have revealed in life the bones of Tataouinea would … Read more
In Depth Paramachairodus is a genus of sabre-toothed cat that lived during the Miocene/Pliocene. The Paramachairodus genus represents one of the first true sabre-toothed cats to appear. Further Reading - Aspects of the functional morphology in the cranial and cervical skeleton of the sabre-toothed cat Paramachairodus ogygia (Kaup, 1832) (Felidae, Machairodontinae) from the Late Miocene … Read more
In Depth When first discovered only the top part of the skull of Majungasaurus was known. This fragment revealed a dome like structure which was taken to be indicative of a pachycephalosaur. Further fossil material would reveal the truth about Majungasaurus being a carnivorous theropod, although this was not the first time that a carnivorous … Read more
In Depth The tiny holotype fossil of Hadrocodium has been considered to represent a very primitive ancestor of modern mammals, though it is not a mammal in itself. This means that there are many unanswered questions about this little creature, specifically concerning the biology of the metabolism and exactly how much like a true mammal … Read more
In Depth Further Reading A giant crocodile from the Plio-Pleistocene of Kenya, the phylogenetic relationships of Neogene African crocodylines, and the antiquity of Crocodylus in Africa. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 32 (3): 587. – C. A. Brochu & G. W. Storrs – 2012.
In Depth Sungeodon is a late surviving genus of dicynodont that lived in China during the early Cretaceous. Most dicynodont genera are Permian in age, and most were wiped out during the Permian/Triassic extinction event. Sungeodon however is proof however that not all dicynodonts were killed off during this time, and that as a group … Read more
In Depth Barcinosuchus is a genus of peirosaurid crocodile that lived in South America during the early Cretaceous. Further Reading - The first crocodyliform from the Chubut Group (Chubut Province, Argentina) and its phylogenetic position within basal Mesoeucrocodylia. - Cretaceous Research 30 (6): 1376–1386. - Juan Mart�n Leardi & Diego Pol - 2009.
In Depth Itapeuasaurus is a genus of rebachisaurid sauropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the early portion of the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - A new rebbachisaurid (Sauropoda: Diplodocoidea) from the middle Cretaceous of northern Brazil. - Cretaceous Research. - R. M. Lindoso, M. A. A. Medeiros, I. S. Carvalho, A. A. Pereira, … Read more
In Depth Nodocephalosaurus was described in 1999 from a partial skull but still managed to make news amongst palaeontologists because it was unlike other North American ankylosaurs. In fact the shape of the skull of Nodocephalosaurus is actually more like the skulls of the ankylosaurs Saichania and Tarchia, both currently only known from central Asia. … Read more
In Depth Halisaurus was first named all the way back in 1869 during a period in American paleontological history today known as the ‘bone wars’. However a year later Othniel Charles Marsh, the person who named Halisaurus, became aware of a genus of fish called Halosaurus and mistakenly came to the conclusion that Halisaurus was … Read more