In Depth As a relative to Haikouichthys and Myllokunmingia, Zhongjianichthys is widely considered to have been a very primitive fish. Zhongjianichthys still lacked scales that are commonly seen in modern fish, and may have instead had a smooth skin texture similar to that of a hagfish. Further Reading – A paleontological perspective of vertebrate origin. … Read more
In Depth A relative of Allodaposuchus, Lohuecosuchus was a crocodile that lived in Western Europe during the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - New Crocodyliforms from Southwestern Europe and Definition of a Diverse Clade of European Late Cretaceous Basal Eusuchians. - PLoS ONE 10(11):e0140679:1-34. - I. Narv�ez, C. A. Brochu, F. Escaso, A. P�rez-Garc�a & F. … Read more
In Depth Euchambersia would have been an unassuming little therocephalian therapsid were it not for one thing; it was possibly venomous. There are small recesses in the jaw behind each canine tooth, possibly to house venom glands. The canine teeth also have grooves running down their length in a similar way to what we can … Read more
In Depth The early study of Efraasia was to say the least one born out of misconceptions. The first remains of this sauropodomorph dinosaur were being found way back in the latter half of the nineteenth century, but they were being assigned to different genera. Some of these genera were sauropodomorphs too, such as Sellosaurus … Read more
In Depth Surprisingly what is perhaps the most important ornithomimosaur so far discovered by the early twentyfirst century is also one of the least known outside of palaeontology. Initially thought to be a primitive ornithomimosaur, Sinornithomimus is now thought to be quite a bit more advanced than early ornithomimosaurs like Harpymimus, but not quite as … Read more
In Depth First discovered in New Zealand in 1874, Taniwhasaurus was named after the Taniwha, kaitiaki of the sea that in Māori legend are protective beings associated with specific locations. As a mosasaur Taniwhasaurus was very similar to the famous Tylosaurus, so much so in fact that one Tylosaurus species, T. haumuriensis is now considered … Read more
In Depth Xixiposaurus is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived in China during the early Jurassic. Further Reading - [A new prosauropod dinosaur from Lower Jurassic in Lufeng of Yunnan]. - Global Geology 29(1):6-15. - T. Sekiya - 2010.
In Depth Dallasaurus was a fascinating discovery, especially for lovers of the marine reptiles that swam the Mesozoic oceans, more particularly the mosasaurs of the Cretaceous. The skeletal features of Dallasaurus have helped to further cement the theory that the mosasaurs evolved from terrestrial (land living) reptiles like monitor lizards during the early/mid Cretaceous. A … Read more
In Depth Tethydraco is a genus of pteranodontid pterosaur known to have lived in North Africa during the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - Late Maastrichtian pterosaurs from North Africa and mass extinction of Pterosauria at the Cretaceous-Paleogene boundary. - PLoS Biology 16(3):e2001663:1-38. - N. R. Longrich, D. M. Martill & B. Andres - 2018.
In Depth Today Antarctica is often referred to as a frozen wasteland, but back in the Jurassic it actually had an extensive covering of forest, something which is confirmed by the presence of fossilised tree trunks found near the remains of Cryolophosaurus. Many of the early Jurassic theropods had display features on top of their … Read more