New Dinosaur Species Identified in Wales

Fossil seashells recovered with the dinosaur jaw. Credit: Owain Evans et al. / CC BY 4.0

Paleontologists astatine the University of Bristol person identified a caller taxon of dinosaur from Triassic stone beds successful South Wales, much than a period aft the fossil was archetypal unearthed adjacent Penarth.

The fossilized jawbone was primitively reported successful 1899 and has been displayed astatine the National Museum of Wales for decades. Researchers could not corroborate whether it adjacent belonged to a dinosaur. Now, utilizing integer scanning and 3D reconstruction, scientists accidental the specimen represents a antecedently unrecognized predatory species.

The study, published successful the Proceedings of the Geologists’ Association, is titled “Re-assessment of a Large Theropod Dinosaur Dentary from the Rhaetian of South Wales.”

Digital tools bring the fossil backmost to life

The fossil consists lone of earthy molds successful the rock; each of the archetypal bony worldly is gone. Using photogrammetry and photograph scanning, paleontology pupil Owain Evans created a elaborate 3D reconstruction that allowed the squad to analyse its structure.

“This specimen has been referred to galore times successful technological papers, but it had yet to beryllium successfully identified,” Evans said.

“It was named Zanclodon cambrensis by Edwin Tully Newton successful 1899, but we knew the sanction Zanclodon had been abandoned arsenic referring to a wide assortment of aboriginal reptiles. It is antithetic from each different dinosaurs from astir that time, and requires a distinctive name.”

A predator larger than expected

Professor Michael J. Benton, elder writer of the study, said the integer models revealed striking anatomical detail. “The earthy molds of the interior and outer faces of the jawbone amusement astonishing detail—every groove, ridge, tooth, and adjacent the serrations on the edges of the teeth,” helium said.

Close-up of fossilized teeth from Newtonsaurus cambrensis. Credit: Owain Evans et al. / CC BY 4.0

The reconstruction besides revealed the animal’s astonishing scale. The preserved conception of jaw measures 28 centimeters, but it represents lone the beforehand half. The afloat jaw apt reached 60 centimeters, suggesting a dinosaur measuring 5 to 7 meters successful length.

“Most of which [Triassic theropods] were fractional the size oregon smaller,” Evans said. “This is unusually ample for a Triassic theropod.”

Positioning the fossil successful dinosaur evolution

Analysis of the reconstructed anatomy confirmed that the fossil belonged to a theropod, a carnivorous dinosaur. The specimen has unsocial dental features and appears to beryllium adjacent the evolutionary roots of some large theropod groups: Coelophysoidea and Averostra.

Wales’s uncommon Triassic record

Cindy Howells, curator astatine the National Museum of Wales, said the discovery highlights the ongoing worth of historical collections. “These humanities specimens are vitally important successful paleontology and often output caller and breathtaking results,” she said.

Howells noted that Wales holds respective uncommon Triassic fossil beds, raising the imaginable of much discoveries. “The re-description of Newtonsaurus cambrensis erstwhile again highlights the value of Wales successful paleontological research,” she said. “There mightiness precise good beryllium different dinosaur waiting to beryllium discovered.”