In Depth Baisesaurus is a genus of ichthyosauromorph reptile that lived in the early Triassic. Though the holotype is incomplete, Baisesaurus is thought to have had a strong resemblance to the better known Utatsusaurus. Like Utatsusaurus, Baisesaurus would have been a fully marine reptile that hunted for fish and other aquatic creatures. Further Reading - … Read more
In Depth Not only is Eocursor one of the earliest known ornithischian dinosaurs, it is also one of the most completely preserved, and for this reason the genus has become something of a benchmark when studying early ornithischian dinosaurs. The holotype specimen of Eocursor was of an individual approximately one meter long, though because of … Read more
In Depth Liaodactylus is a genus of pterosaur that lived in Asia during the late Jurassic. Liaodactylus is noted for having numerous small teeth in comb-like structures that meshed together when the jaws closed. This would have allowed Liaodactylus to feed by filtering out small invertebrates from water and soft sediment. Further Reading - Earliest … Read more
In Depth Vegasaurus is a genus of elasmosaurid plesiosaur that lived in the waters around what we now know as Antarctica during the late Cretaceous. It should be remembered at this stage that during the late Cretaceous Antarctica was closer to the equator than it is today, and the climate and water temperature would have … Read more
In Depth Rugosuchus is a genus of crocodile the lived in China during the early half of the Late Cretaceous. Further Reading - Cranial anatomy of a new crocodyliform (Archosauria: Crocodylomorpha) from the Lower Cretaceous of Song-Liao Plain, northeastern China. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 38:1653-1663. - X.-C. Wu, Z.-W. Cheng & A. P. Russell … Read more
In Depth When the skull of Torvoneustes was originally described it was thought to belong to a species of Metriorhynchus, M. superciliosus. However the later discovery of post cranial remains led to the conclusion that the skull remains did not belong to that species of Metriorhynchus, and they were re-described as a new species of … Read more
In Depth Superficially Qinglongopterus has been found to be very similar to Rhamphorhynchus, the pterosaur that is the type genus of the Rhamphorhynchidae and to which Qinglongopterus is thought to be the most closely related. This however hints that both Qinglongopterus and Rhamphorhynchus represented their evolutionary limit as they are separated by many millions of … Read more
In Depth Nurhachius is perhaps most closely related to Istiodactylus even though the two are geographically separated by several thousand miles. However Nurhachius has a different skull which is lower with a slightly curved lower jaw. Nurhachius is named after the first khan of the Qing dynasty, who once ruled from the area where Nurhachius … Read more
In Depth Just thirty years before its description, the concept of dinosaurs evolving into birds was still a very controversial theory that did not have universally wide acceptance in academic circles. However, since the opening of fossil beds in China, new discoveries have slowly but steadily been made, each one adding more and more weight … Read more
In Depth Calcarichelys was a relatively small late Cretaceous turtle but one with a highly specialised shell. Instead of the usual concave curve across the back, a series of enlarged spikes ran down the middle of the back. These are taken as being almost certainly a defensive adaptation to make it more difficult for predators … Read more