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May 8, 2013
Scientists in Canada have unearthed a new species of dinosaur that they believe is the oldest in North America and possibly the world. The dog-sized herbivore was discovered in southern Alberta and is thought to have roamed the plains of the newly formed continent around 85 million years ago.
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Scientists in Canada have unearthed a new species of dinosaur that they believe is the oldest in North America and possibly the world.
The dog-sized herbivore was discovered in southern Alberta and is thought to have roamed the plains of the newly formed continent around 85 million years ago.
The find of Acrotholus audeti has sparked suggestion that dinosaurs were more varied and diverse than first thought, with scientists claiming more smaller dinosaurs are yet to be found. Perhaps the widespread idea of vast creatures – in many ways like monsters – dominating the prehistoric world could be proven wrong.
Acrotholus’ fossil revealed it to have a dome-shaped skull that might have been used to headbutt other dinosaurs living at the time, or possibly as decoration.
The team of researchers from the University of Toronto unveiled the new species in the journal Nature Communications, stating it walked on two legs but stood no higher than a man’s knee, while it weighed 40kg (88lbs) and had a skull composed of solid bone 10cm (3inches) thick.
The skull places the new find into a specific group of dinosaurs called pachycephalosaurs, and it is thanks to their thick skulls that they have been discovered because they were more easily preserved as fossils.
Indeed, smaller dinosaurs, in particular, are much rarer in fossil records because their more delicate bones are less likely to be preserved.
Dr Michael Ryan, a co-researcher on the project and curator of vertebrate palaeontology at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History, said the dinosaur’s skull was key to its discovery.
“One of the interesting things about these small, dome-headed dinosaurs is that whenever you find them you typically find the skull cap, just like we did with Acrotholus,” Dr Ryan said.
“We find very little of the rest of the body. We occasionally find a few teeth or scraps of bones from the hands and feet but skeletons are extremely rare. When you compare the fossil records to that of larger dinosaurs like T. rex, we suspect smaller dinosaurs are underrepresented.”
