Episode 421: A raptor with preserved intestines. Plus a brand new aquatic dinosaur (that isn’t Spinosaurus), a pregnant T. rex, a dinosaur airlift, and extra
Information:
- Paleontologists found new dromaeosaur, Daurlong wangi, full with a part of the intestines! supply
- A brand new non-avian dinosaur, Natovenator, with a streamlined physique for swimming and searching fish supply
- The Auckland Warfare Memorial Museum in New Zealand has two T. rex on show, and one in every of them could have been pregnant supply
- Maximus, the T. rex cranium, offered for lots lower than anticipated supply
- Gary the Edmontosaurus was airlifted from Crimson Deer River valley in Alberta, Canada this summer season supply
- You may get an AR mannequin of Scotty the T. rex through the Royal Saskatchewan Museum supply
- The Hongkong Publish is issuing six dinosaur stamps supply
Sponsors:
The dinosaur of the day: Ostafrikasaurus
- Theropod that lived within the Late Jurassic in what’s now Tanzania (Tendaguru Formation)
- Solely enamel have been discovered
- No cranium fossils discovered for Ostafrikasaurus
- However as a spinosaur, Ostafrikasaurus most likely had an extended, slim snout. In all probability additionally had an extended tail, cumbersome physique, and walked on two legs
- Estimated to be about 28 ft (8.4 m) lengthy and weigh 1.15 tonnes
- Exhausting to estimate dimension primarily based on the fragmentary fossils
- Fossils discovered between 1909 and 1912
- Throughout the expeditions from 1909 to 1912, 230 remoted theropod enamel had been discovered. Considered one of them was assigned to Labrosaurus? stechowi in 1920 by Werner Janensch, who tried to establish all of the enamel by classifying them into 5 sorts in a monograph in 1925
- In 2000, James Madsen and Samuel Welles referred the Labrosaurus? stechowi enamel to Ceratosaurus sp.
- Labrosaurus is now thought of to be a synonym of Allosaurus
- In 2007, Denver Fowler steered the enamel had been spinosaurid enamel. Eric Buffetaut in 2008 additionally steered they had been spinosaurid enamel
- In 2011, Oliver Rauhut discovered Labrosaurus? stechowi to be doubtful (no distinctive options) and referred the enamel discovered within the Tendaguru Formation as Ceratosaurus? stechowi
- Ostafrikasaurus named in 2012 by Eric Buffetaut, primarily based on two enamel
- One of many two enamel is the holotype
- Holotype tooth is 1.8 in (46 mm) lengthy, and has a curved entrance edge, with massive serrations (bigger than different spinosaurid enamel)
- Tentatively referred a second tooth. Each enamel are curved within the entrance however there are some variations within the ridges (which may very well be attributable to particular person variation) and the 2 enamel got here from completely different elements of the Tendaguru Formation
- Exhausting to call dinosaurs primarily based on enamel, however Buffetaut stated that theropod enamel, and particularly spinosaurid enamel, can have distinctive sufficient options to call a dinosaur (primarily based on options corresponding to ornamentation)
- Tooth regarded much like the enamel of Baryonyx
- Ornamentation on the enamel have similarities to a number of completely different theropods, together with Ceratosaurus and Coelophysis
- A 2020 research of enamel from the Tendaguru Formation discovered Ostafrikasaurus to be a ceratosaurid
- Fowler steered ceratosaur and spinosaur enamel had been related, although Buffetaut didn’t agree
- Buffetaut described Ostafrikasaurus as an early spinosaurid theropod
- Tooth had sturdy ridges (Baryonyx and shut relations, together with spinosaurid enamel present in Asia, additionally had sturdy ridges, which is why the enamel are considered spinosaurid)
- Sort species is Ostafrikasaurus crassiserratus
- Genus identify comes from [Deutsch]-Ostafrika, which suggests “German East Africa lizard”
- Species identify means “thick” and “serrated” and refers back to the enamel
- Enamel on the tooth is “finely wrinkled”
- Giant serrations on the enamel
- Helps present that spinosaur enamel turning into extra conical and fewer serrated as they developed
- Could imply that earlier spinosaurids had bigger serrations on their enamel they usually developed to have smoother enamel that had been additionally extra straight (much less curved)
- One of many oldest recognized spinosaurid fossils
- Helps present spinosaurids could have lived world wide earlier than Pangaea broke up
- Buffetaut steered spinosaurids had been widespread early on, primarily based on spinosaurids being present in Asia and Asia most likely was separated from the opposite continents within the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous
- Numerous different spinosaurs described are from the Early Cretaceous, a lot later than Ostafrikasaurus
- In 2016, Alejandro Serrano-Martínez and others described a attainable spinosaurid tooth present in Niger. Tooth might be from the Center Jurassic, about 14 million years sooner than Ostafrikasaurus (which might make it the oldest recognized spinosaurid fossil)
- Lived in a subtropical to tropical setting, with dry and wet seasons
- Different dinosaurs that lived across the identical time and place embrace sauropods corresponding to Giraffatitan, stegosaurs corresponding to Kentrosaurus, and different theropods corresponding to abelisaurids, and presumably Torvosaurus
- Different animals that lived across the identical time and place included pterosaurs, crocodyliforms, fish, and mammals
Enjoyable Reality:
Terrestrial animals have returned to the water (to develop into secondarily aquatic) over 30 occasions.
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