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In 2008, researchers discovered the fossil of a remarkable armored dinosaur in southern Utah. The dinosaur of the North American Upper Cretaceous ankylosaurid was covered with a smooth bone armor, but it seems closer to the ankylosaurids found in Asia than to those who lived in North America.
The new species of ankylosaurid dinosaur lived 76 million years ago at the end of the Cretaceous and traveled the lost continent of Laramidia. Although many ankylosaurid dinosaur fossils have been found over the years in the southwestern United States, the recent fossil offers the most complete skeleton of ankylosaurid in the region. The fossil includes a complete bone of the skull, vertebrae and limbs, as well as a perfectly preserved bone armor.
The most interesting thing about this dinosaur is his thorny bone armor covering the skull and muzzle. These defining characteristics make it strikingly similar to Asian ankylosaurids originating in Asia between 125 and 100 million years ago.
"A reasonable hypothesis would be that Utah's ankylosaurids are related to those found elsewhere in western North America." Co-author Randall Irmis study said in a statement.
A new badysis indicates that the diversity and evolution of armored dinosaurs in the region has been the result of lower levels of the sea have allowed Asian Ankylosaurid dinosaurs to emigrate to North America at several times during the late Cretaceous, and allowed dinosaurs and other animals to move between Asia and North America. presence of two distinct groups of ankylosaurid dinosaurs.
"It is extremely fascinating and important for the science of pale ontology that we can read so much information from the fossil record, which allows us to better understand the extinct organisms and the ecosystems they were making. part, "said lead author Jelle Wiersma
" … Akainacephalus johnsoni; Not only is he the first Late Cretaceous ankylosaurid dinosaur described and named from Utah, but this unique animal reinforces also the idea that distinct northern and southern provincialism existed during the late Campanian stadium at Laramidia, because, to this day, we do not see this type of ankylosaurid dinosaurs in the North Laramidia fossil record. "
Akainacephalus johnsoni has been badigned to a new genre. The name of the genus comes from the Greek words akaina, which means "spine" or "spike", and cephalus, which means "head". The other part of the name pays tribute to Randy Johnson, a dedicated museum volunteer who has skilfully restored his skull.
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