Shastasaurus species and fossil distribution Shastasaurus hit the record books in 2011 with the re-examination of a set of ichthyosaur remains from British Columbia that were initially described as a new species of Shonisaurus back in 2004. Study of the remains has found that while they are similar, the remains are a better match … Read more
In Depth The problem with the genus Macrurosaurus is that it is only represented by two sets of caudal vertebrae that were both found separately and then later added together. This combined with the lack of other fossil remains for the genus mean that some palaeontologist consider the genus to be dubious because it would … Read more
In Depth With only the end of the tail missing, Aucasaurus has the most complete single abelisaurid skeleton currently known. This has allowed for more accurate general features which are thought to be common to the group such as the famously underdeveloped arms that are even more puny than those that appear upon Tyrannosaurus, to … Read more
In Depth Kapes was a little parareptile that was once considered to be a synonym to the earlier named Anomoiodon. Later study has no re-affirmed the validity of this genus, and now Kapes is considered to be a very close relative of Anomoiodon. Further Reading - O Rodovom Sostave Rannetriasovykh Prokolofonid Priuralya [On the Genus … Read more
In Depth Gorgetosuchus is a genus of aetosaur that lived in North America during the late Triassic. At the time of its description, Gorgetosuchus was named upon the basis of osteoderms (bony plates) that would have gone around the skin. These plates are unique from other aetosaurs in that they reach almost all the way … Read more
In Depth The toothless beak of Shenzhoupterus is quite characteristic of the azdarchid line of pterosaurs and indicates a potentially carnivorous diet not restricted to fish. The skull of Shenzhoupterus is proportionately deep and the antorbital fenestra is especially large to accomodate this morphology. A convex shaped crest also rose up from the top of … Read more
In Depth The holotype fossils of Altirhinus were originally classified as a species of Iguanodon, I. orientalis back in 1952. However Iguanodon has long suffered from the wastebasket taxon effect where remains of superficially similar dinosaurs have been attributed to the genus, in part due to its long history and seemingly wide distribution of fossils … Read more
In Depth Athabascasaurus is a member of the Platypterygiinae, a wide ranging group of ichthyosaurs that were active in both hemispheres. Other similar ichthyosaurs include Sveltonectes, Aegirosaurus, Platypterygius and Caypullisaurus amongst others. Further Reading – A new Lower Cretaceous (lower Albian) ichthyosaur genus from the Clearwater Formation, Alberta, Canada. – Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences … Read more
In Depth Fossils of Xinjiangovenator were once attributed to the genus Phaedrolosaurus, however Phaedrolosaurus was originally described from a single tooth with additional lower limb bones referred to the genus upon the basis that they were found near the tooth within the same fossil bearing formation. In 2005 Rauhut and Xu separated these remains from … Read more
In Depth At the time of its description Haplocheirus was the oldest known alvarezsaur by an impressive sixty-three million years before the previous record holder. This places Haplocheirus firmly within the Oxfordian stage of the Jurassic revealing that the alvarezsaurs began at least this far back rather than the early Cretaceous period as previously thought. … Read more