In Depth Quaesitosaurus is only known from a partial skull of what appears to have been a diplodocid sauropod dinosaur, however it has also drawn similarity to Nemegtosaurus that is also from the same area and also only known from a skull. If true then Quaesitosaurus may also be connected Opisthocoelicaudia which is only known … Read more
In Depth Although based upon incomplete remains, Ceratonykus is known to have been one of the alvarezsaurs. Other alvarezsaurs from the same formation include Parvicursor and possibly Mononykus. Further Reading - Ceratonykus oculatus gen. et sp. nov., a new dinosaur (? Theropoda, Alvarezsauria) from the Late Cretaceous of Mongolia. - Paleontological Journal 43(1):94-106. - V. … Read more
In Depth Although the last part of the name ‘suchus’ is ancient Greek for crocodile, Sulcusuchus was actually a plesiosaur, a member of the famous group of long necked marine reptiles of the Mesozoic. In more specific terms it is considered to be a polycotylid plesiosaur, with one of the more famous members of this … Read more
In Depth Although only known from incomplete skull and lower jaw material, Zhuchengtyrannus was still almost certainly one of the largest of the Asian tyrannosaurines. Also, even though the teeth of the holotype are not particularly well preserved, there are more as yet unidentified teeth that are known from that location that may yet prove … Read more
In Depth Sinornithosaurus was especially well preserved, and not only were the presence of feathers clearly revealed; they showed indications of having differing colours for different body areas. The feathers, while not exactly like those of modern birds, are still more advanced than in other species, including some of the later dromaeosaurids. This is significant … Read more
In Depth In life Procaimanoidea would have lived like a small alligator feeding upon a variety of animals from fish such as Diplomystus, to invertebrates like freshwater shrimp. The main evidence for this comes from the two different kinds of teeth in the jaws, sharper conical teeth in the front, and more rounded teeth in … Read more
In Depth The skull of Bistahieversor has many features that are considered primitive for the tyrannosaurid group, but most importantly, a noticeable depth that is lacking in other, and later, tyrannosaurid species. This is significant because it was once thought that only the later and more advanced tyrannosaurids, like Tyrannosaurus itself, had deeper snouts. The … Read more
In Depth Like many early discovered pterosaurs the taxonomic history of Cycnorhamphus is quite muddled. Initially assigned to Pterodactylus, the first pterosaur discovered that ended up being treated like a wastebasket for almost any discovered pterosaur remains, Harry Seeley redesignated the specimen Cycnorhamphus. However another palaeontologist, Felix Plieninger, cited mistakes in the description and in … Read more
In Depth Tropeognathus was first named in 1987 after the description of a pterosaur skull that had been purchased from a fossil dealer. In 2002 a set of lower jaws was further attributed to the genus, and most recently at the time of writing a third specimen was added in 2013, and this was the … Read more
In Depth The skull that is the holotype of Calsoyasuchus is incomplete with quite a few pieces missing. However CT scanning of the skull has revealed the presence of an intricate network of air passages and a double walled secondary palate; a feature of modern crocodiles. How Calsoyasuchus fits into the development of modern crocodiles … Read more