Thread: DINOSAURS / FOSSILS

Dinosaur skull dismissed as 'rubbish' for 90 years is new species - a 'missing link' in the triceratops family


- Bones dismissed as 'rubbish' by museum keeper in 1916 and shelved

- May force scientists to rethink how they classify horned dinosaur group

- Distinctive 'neck frill' helps link several other species

Read more: Dinosaur skull dismissed as 'rubbish' for 90 years is new species - a 'missing link' in the triceratops family | Mail Online

"Vampire" Parasite Found Entombed in Amber

Bat fly fossil from 20 million years ago the first of its kind, study says..

The first known fossil of a rare bloodsucker called the bat fly has been found in 20-million-year-old amber. What's more, the ancient bug was host to bat malaria, an even rarer find, according to a new study.

George Poinar, Jr., an expert on insects preserved in amber at Oregon State University, discovered the bat fly in a mine in the Dominican Republic.

"Vampire" Parasite Found Entombed in Amber

Oldest Animal Discovered—Earliest Ancestor of Us All?

Microscopic, sponge-like African fossils could be the earliest known animals—and possibly our earliest evolutionary ancestors, scientists say.

The creature, Otavia antiqua, was found in 760-million-year-old rock in Namibia and was as tiny as it may be important.

"The fossils are small, about the size of a grain of sand, and we have found many hundreds of them," said study leader Anthony Prave, a geologist at the University of St. Andrews in the U.K.

Oldest Animal Discovered

T. Rex Bite Strongest Ever on Land—Ten Times Greater Than Gator's

Dinosaur still no match for prehistoric "megatooth" sharks.



The recontructed skull musculature of a South Dakota T. rex

Once the largest known carnivore on land, Tyrannosaurus rex also had the most powerful bite of any terrestrial animal of any time period, a new study suggests.

Much conventional wisdom about the world's most famous dinosaur species has been called into question in recent years—for instance, whether the 40-foot-long (12-meter-long) T. rex species could run or only plod along.

Likewise, some have contended that the supposedly mighty predator actually had a modest bite, limiting T. rex to scavenging.

T. Rex Bite Strongest Ever on Land

Dinosaur's Flashy Feathers Revealed

According to a new study, Microraptors—four-winged, feathered dinosaurs that lived 125 million years ago—sported Earth's earliest known iridescence, as pictured in this illustration.

Recent research suggests the pigeon-size Microraptor's feathers glimmered black and blue in sunlight, like feathers of modern crows or grackles.

The findings are the earliest evidence of iridescence in any creature-bird or dinosaur, said study leader Julia Clarke, a paleontologist at the University of Texas at Austin.

Pictures: Dinosaur's Flashy Feathers Revealed

Just saw an ad for a documentary on a giant snake called "Titanoboa" so I looked it up...there is a model of it in Grand Central Station.



The model is 48 feet long; 3 feet in diameter at the thickest point. The snake is 70% longer than the biggest living snake. Fossils were found in 2009 in Colombia.

Ancient Ichthyosaur Mother Did Not Explode, Scientists Say

It is unlikely that the body of a mother ichthyosaur exploded, say researchers who offer another explanation for the scattered remains of embryos found around her in rock that was once deep underwater.

Rather, the scattering of the embryos was probably caused by minor sea currents after the expectant mother died and her body decayed some 182 million years ago, the researchers propose.

Ichthyosaur Mother Did Not Explode | Fossils & Decomposition | LiveScience

Yutyrannus Huali, Tyrannosaurus Rex Relative, Was Largest Feathered Dinosaur Ever

A newly discovered titanic tyrannosaur is the biggest feathered dinosaur yet, reaching up to 30 feet (9 meters) long and weighing more than 3,000 pounds.

While smaller than Tyrannosaurus rex, the new species, named Yutyrannus huali — meaning "beautiful feathered tyrant" — is still 40 times the weight of the largest feathered dinosaur known previously, Beipiaosaurus, which was described in 1999.

Yutyrannus Huali, Tyrannosaurus Rex Relative, Was Largest Feathered Dinosaur Ever

Prehistoric bird splashed down in Saskatchewan

Brodavis americanus looked like a loon




Shown here is an artist rendering of Brodavis americanus from the rivers in south-central Saskatchewan, 65 million years ago. That's a Triceratops in the background. (Artist Wes Long/Royal Saskatchewan Museum)

Scientists say they've discovered a new species of prehistoric bird with a Saskatchewan connection.

Brodavis americanus, a toothy, loon-like bird, splashed through rivers and lakes in the region around the same era as Tyrannosaurus rex and other big dinosaurs.

Prehistoric bird splashed down in Saskatchewan - Saskatchewan - CBC News

"World's first mammoths' graveyard" found in eastern Serbia

KOSTOLAC -- Archaeologists in Kostolac, eastern Serbia, on Tuesday morning witnessed a stunning discovery at the Drmno coal strip mining field.




Archaeologists work at the Drmno site (Tanjug)

No less than five mammoth skeletons were discovered that day inside the stretch of about a hundred meters.

In all, seven skeletons have been found so far at the location, Belgrade daily Večernje Novosti is reporting.

Archaeologists working in the nearby Roman site Viminacium were fist alerted to one set of giant remains of a mammoth, that was damaged by the mining machinery. But then torrential rain fell on Monday, rinsing away the sand.

B92 - News - "World's first mammoths' graveyard" found in eastern Serbia

Dinosaur coldblooded theory gets dash of cold water

Dinosaurs: coldblooded or warmblooded? Inquiring paleontologists have long wanted to know, and a new study offers thoughts on the issue. Basically, it says that a central line of evidence for coldbloodedness is all wet.

For years, some dinosaur mavens have argued that the ancient beasts were coldblooded, based on the growth patterns seen in fossil bones. Examination revealed that -- like the rings of a tree -- bone material was laid down in layers. The argument went like this: The rings corresponded to periods of active growth followed by periods of slow growth, just what you might expect with a coldblooded animal, which can’t control its inner temperature very well.

Dinosaur coldblooded theory gets dash of cold water - latimes.com

I have believed that dinosaurs were warm blooded since first reading the evidence years ago.

To start with birds are dinosaurs (the last surviving examples) and they are warm blooded!

Iconoclast

Have you ever watched the special "How To Build A Dinosaur?" It was pretty cool. They discussed making a Jurassic Park by retro engineering birds. Not as cool as the movie, but still something I'd like to see.

"Beautiful" Squirrel-Tail Dinosaur Fossil Upends Feather Theory

"Probably all dinosaurs were feathered," scientist concludes.



"Certainly one of the most beautiful dinosaur fossils ever found."

A newfound squirrel-tailed specimen is the oldest known meat-eating dinosaur with feathers, according to a new study. The late-Jurassic discovery, study authors say, strikes down the image of dinosaurs as "overgrown lizards."

Unearthed recently from a Bavarian limestone quarry, the "exquisitely preserved" 150-million-year-old fossil has been dubbed Sciurumimus albersdoerferi—"Scirius" being the scientific name for tree squirrels.

"Beautiful" Squirrel-Tail Dinosaur Fossil Upends Feather Theory

Tiny tracks of first complex animal life discovered

Sluglike animal wriggled around sediment in search of food about 585 million years ago



A photo of the Tacuari trace fossils, illustrating typical bilobate and sinuous trails.

A teensy sluglike animal that wriggled around the sediment in search of food at least 585 million years ago didn't die in vain. The tiny mover left behind tracks that researchers now say represent evidence of the earliest known bilateral animal, or multicellular life with bilateral symmetry.

The finding, detailed in the June 29 issue of the journal Science, pushes back the date for the existence of advanced multicellular animal life by at least 30 million years. The oldest evidence before this discovery came from Russia and dated to 555 million years ago.

Tiny tracks of 1st complex animal life found - Technology & science - Science - LiveScience - msnbc.com

Originally Posted by Robertvincent

"Beautiful" Squirrel-Tail Dinosaur Fossil Upends Feather Theory

"Probably all dinosaurs were feathered," scientist concludes.



"Certainly one of the most beautiful dinosaur fossils ever found."

A newfound squirrel-tailed specimen is the oldest known meat-eating dinosaur with feathers, according to a new study. The late-Jurassic discovery, study authors say, strikes down the image of dinosaurs as "overgrown lizards."

Unearthed recently from a Bavarian limestone quarry, the "exquisitely preserved" 150-million-year-old fossil has been dubbed Sciurumimus albersdoerferi—"Scirius" being the scientific name for tree squirrels.

"Beautiful" Squirrel-Tail Dinosaur Fossil Upends Feather Theory

The problem I have with this statement is that we have actual fossil impressions of some dinosaur skin. Some of it more closely resembles crocodilans, while other specimens have other assorted scale textures and patterns.


I added visuals.

Hadrosaur skin impression:








Carnotaurus skin impression:



Carnotaurus reconstruction:



Lifesize model:



Long necked Sauropod skin impression:

Missing Link For Wonky-Eyed Fish Discovered

The face of a flounder, sole, halibut or other flatfish looks like a hodgepodge of mismatched puzzle pieces forced together, with eyes that don't seem to match one another nor the orientation of the animal's mouth.

This is because, as these fish mature, one eye migrates over the top of the fish's head, coming to rest above the other eye, so both are on the same side of the head. A new fossil discovery has shed light on how this strange trait came about.

"Missing Link" For Wonky-Eyed Fish Discovered | LiveScience

150-million-year-old oyster which is ten times normal size probably contains the world's biggest pearl - but no-one wants to open it to find out


A 145million-year-old oyster fossil trawled up off the south coast by fishermen could contain the mother of all pearls.

Experts used medical MRI scanning technology to analyse the fossil to discover if there was a rare gem inside.

And their results showed up a mysterious smooth object about the size of a golf ball.



Bigger on the inside: Aquarist Jenna MacFarlane from the Blue Reef Aquarium holds the gigantic oyster could it contain the world's biggest pearl.

Read more: 150-million-year-old oyster which is ten times normal size probably contains the world's biggest pearl - but no-one wants to open it to find out | Mail Online