In Depth At the time of its description, Mymoorapelta was the first Jurassic aged ankylosaur to be discovered in North America. Since this description however, other have questioned exactly what kind of ankylosaur Mymoorapelta was. Mymoorapelta does not have a tail club like ankylosaurids, meaning that it was more likely a nodosaur. The original describers … Read more
In Depth Like all other thalattosaurs, Concavispina was a quadrupedal marine reptile that lived on coastlines and hunted in the ocean for its food. Propulsion in the water was provided by undulating its laterally compressed tail in a side to side motion rather than relying upon paddling with the limbs. Concavispina is noted for having … Read more
In Depth Gasosaurus was named in honour of the gasoline company that found the Lower Shaximiao Formation, then known as the Dashanpu fossil quarry. Since its naming Gasosaurus has been the subject of uncertainty regarding its validity and position. There have been claims that it may the same as a slightly older genus called Kaijiangosaurus … Read more
In Depth Protoichthyosaurus is a genus of small ichthyosaur that lived during the early Jurassic, though possibly also in the Late Triassic. Further Reading - The affinities of Liassic and later ichthyosaurs. Palaeontology 22(4):921-946. - R. M. Appleby - 1979. - The taxonomic utility of forefin morphology in Lower Jurassic ichthyosaurs: Protoichthyosaurus and Ichthyosaurus. - … Read more
In Depth Gongxianosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur known to have lived in China towards the end of early Jurassic. When compared to other early sauropods, Gongxianosaurus is generally thought to be fairly intermediate in development, being more advanced than genera such as Melanorosaurus and Antetonitrus, but not as advanced as genera such as … Read more
In Depth Seismophis is a genus of snake that lived in South America during the late Cretaceous. Further Reading - The oldest Brazilian snakes from the early Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian). - Acta Palaeontologica Polonica. - A. S. Hsiou, A. M. Albino, M. A. Medeiros & R. A. B. Santos - 2013.
In Depth Sigilmassasaurus has had a turbulent taxonomic history, at times being valid, other times being synonymous with other genera, to being valid again. It all began in 1996 when Dale Russel described a series of cervical vertebrae that were noted for being fairly short, hence the type species name S. brevicollis which mans ‘short … Read more
In Depth Out of all the hadrosaurs (also known as the duck-billed dinosaurs) Parasaurolophus is one of the most widely recognised thanks to its very distinctive skull crest. The name Parasaurolophus is a bit of a mouthful, but this is based around the early interpretation that Parasaurolophus was similar to another genus names Saurolophus … Read more
In Depth Nundasuchus is a genus of archosaurian predator that lived in Tanzania during the mid Triassic. Nundasuchus superficially resembles a rauisuchian, however the exact phylogenetic position of Nundasuchus is still uncertain at the time of writing. Currently most prefer to consider it a member of the Pseudosuchia, the same group that also includes the … Read more
In Depth Unfortunately Saurosuchus is only known from incomplete remains, but those that are known indicate that it was big. Key to identifying the fossils as being those of a predator is the skull that has several classic predatory characteristics. One is the fact that the skull is wider at the back than at the … Read more