In Depth The only known example of the pterosaur Feilongus is incomplete and has been damaged in the fossilisation process. Only the skull, mandible and parts of the braincase are preserved. What can be gleamed from the fossil is that Feilongus had a large overbite with the upper jaw extended up to 2.7 centimetres beyond … Read more
In Depth When first described in 1979, Mussaurus was only known from juvenile individuals, and until 2013 this was supposedly the case. However in 1980 the adult were actually described, they had just been classed under the genus Plateosaurus. With a re-evaluation of these in 2013, Mussaurus is also known from adult remains, and the … Read more
In Depth One of the monkey lemurs from Madagascar, Hadropithecus is often described as being similar to its relative Archaeolemur in behaviour and lifestyle. Hadropithecus was a powerfully built lemur that seems to have been best adapted to a cursorial life on the ground. Lemurs as we know them today usually have long arms and … Read more
In Depth Although only fragmentary remains are known Ilokelesia has been identified as a basal abelisaurid. Like many South American dinosaurs, Ilokelesia had been named using the Mapuche language from a combination of the works ‘ilo’ (flesh) and ‘kelesio’ (lizard). Further Reading – A basal Abelisauria Novas, 1992 (Theropoda–Ceratosauria) from the Cretaceous of Patagonia, Argentina. … Read more
In Depth Wightia is a genus of tapejarid pterosaur that lived in Europe during the early Cretaceous. Wightia is named after the Isle of Wight which is situated on the southern coast of England. Further Reading - First tapejarid pterosaur from the Wessex Formation (Wealden Group: Lower Cretaceous, Barremian) of the United Kingdom. - Cretaceous … Read more
In Depth Named after a demon that appears in Mapuche mythology, Gualicho is a medium sized genus of theropod dinosaur that lived in South America during the early stages of the late Cretaceous. Gualicho would have been a predator of other smaller and similarly sized dinosaurs. Gualicho was named as a genus in 2016, and … Read more
In Depth Wulatelong has been considered to be a fairly basal oviraptorid similar to some genera such as Incisivosaurus and Caudipteryx. Unfortunately the holotype remains of Wulatelong have suffered erosion from the harsh environment that they were found in because they were discovered already exposed to the elements. Wulatelong would have likely shared its habitat … Read more
In Depth Proburnetia is a genus of biarmosuchian therapsid that lived in Russia during the Permian. Further Reading - On the cranial morphology of the basal therapsids Burnetia and Proburnetia (Therapsida: Burnetiidae). - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 22 (2): 257–267. - B. S. Rubidge & C. A. Sidor - 2002.
In Depth So the taxonomic history of Monoclonius goes a little something like this. In 1876 multiply dinosaur fossils were recovered from the Judith River in Montana, USA. These fossils were sent to Edward Drinker Cope (One of the two main figures in the Bone Wars) and from these two new dinosaur genera were named, … Read more
In Depth Wangosaurus is a genus of pistosaurs that lived in the waters around what is now China during the Triassic. Pistosaurs like Wangosaurus were the precursors to the plesiosaurs that would rise to prominence by the end of the Triassic, and go on to live in the worlds ‘oceans throughout the Mesozoic. Further Reading … Read more