Nhandumirim

In Depth        Nhandumirim is a genus of saurischian dinosaur that lived in South America during the late Triassic.‭ ‬Nhandumirim has been interpreted both‭ ‬as a theropod dinosaur by some‭ ‬and a sauropodomorph by others.‭ ‬Unfortunately the lack of fossil preservation of the holotype individual makes it hard to be certain which. Further Reading -‭ ‬A … Read more

Liaoningosaurus

In Depth        Liaoningosaurus is named after the Liaoning Province of China,‭ ‬which is where the holotype remains were found.‭ ‬The species name L.‭ ‬paradoxus came about from the mix of nodosaur and ankylosaur features in the specimen.‭ ‬In fact the original classification of Liaoningosaurus was that of a nodosaurid,‭ ‬but today it is actually regarded … Read more

Ceratosaurus

ceratosaurus 1

In Depth        Ceratosaurus has been known to science since towards the end of the nineteenth century,‭ ‬and thanks to its head ornamentation,‭ ‬has long been one of the most popular.‭ ‬Early on,‭ ‬Othniel Charles Marsh considered the blade like nasal horn to have been a weapon against other dinosaurs,‭ ‬but this is no longer considered … Read more

Proceratosaurus

In Depth        Proceratosaurus was a small predatory theropod dinosaur active in what would become southern England during the mid-Jurassic.‭ ‬Arthur Smith Woodward first described the partial skull of Proceratosaurus as another species of Megalosaurus,‭ ‬a genus that suffered from the wastebasket taxon effect of almost any predatory dinosaur fossil being attributed to it.‭ ‬Friedrich von … Read more

Stegoceras

In Depth        Stegoceras is one of the more common and better known pachycephalosaurs,‭ ‬and one that seems to have had a range that extended from South west/central Canada to the south western states of the USA.‭ ‬The genus however seems to have been quite a bit smaller than its more famous relative‭ ‬Pachycephalosaurus.        Like with … Read more

Camelotia

In Depth        Camelotia was a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived in England during the Late Triassic.‭ ‬However the rear limb is also similar to early sauropods,‭ ‬something which has seen the Camelotia genus tentatively assigned to the Melanorosauridae‭ (‬type genus Melanorosaurus‭)‬.‭ ‬The name Camelotia was derived from the name Camelot,‭ ‬the castle that was … Read more

Texacephale

In Depth        So far the pachycephalosaur Texacephale is only known from partial skull bones,‭ ‬mostly of the dome that would have grown from the top the head.‭ ‬Texacephale is noted for having two flanges of bone that grew from each side of the dome. Further Reading -‭ ‬Texacephale langstoni,‭ ‬a new genus of pachycephalosaurid‭ (‬Dinosauria:‭ … Read more

Liaoningopterus

In Depth        Liaoningopterus was one of the largest pterosaurs known from China, and is considered to be similar to the pterosaur Anhanguera known from all over the world. Liaoningopterus had two crests on both the top of its snout and lower jaw, similar to Ornithocheirus which is why Liaoningopterus is placed within the Ornithocheiridae.        Also … Read more

Bakonydraco

In Depth        To date not much can be revealed about Bakonydraco other than it was almost certainly an azdarchid pterosaur.‭ ‬Bakonydraco did still differ from many other azdarchids however by having what appears to have been a tall,‭ ‬deep beak.‭ ‬This has implied a possibly piscivorous specialisation as opposed to a more general carnivore.‭ ‬It … Read more

Jianchangnathus

In Depth        Although Jianchangnathus has been found to have several similarities with Scaphognathus,‭ ‬its frontal teeth actually pointed forwards like with Dorygnathus.‭ ‬This may have been to make it easier for Jianchangnathus to pick up fish with its mouth,‭ ‬significantly increasing the chance of successful prey capture.        Another pterosaur from the same deposit is Fenghuangopterus,‭ … Read more