Paleontology News

Eocene-Period Trogon Already Had Heterodactyl Feet

Reconstruction of the living bar-tailed trogon (Apaloderma vittatum) in the Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum.
May 8, 2023 by Natali Anderson

Trogons (Trogoniformes) are the only group of birds with a heterodactyl foot, in which the second toe is permanently reversed. Reconstruction of the living bar-tailed trogon (Apaloderma vittatum) in the Catalogue of the Birds in the British Museum. Trogons and their close relatives, quetzals, are members a pantropically distributed order of birds consisting of a single family, the Trogonidae, which contains at least 43 species and 109 subspecies. They...

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Reconstruction of the Castle Bank community; sponge in foreground is 2 cm tall. Image credit: Botting et al., doi: 10.1038/s41559-023-02038-4.

Ordovician-Period Fossil Site Discovered in Wales

May 3, 2023 by Sergio Prostak

The highly-diverse Middle Ordovician fossil site at Castle Bank, Wales, is directly comparable with the famous Burgess Shale and Chengjiang biotas in paleoenvironment...

An artist’s reconstruction of two Amphimachairodus hezhengensis defending their prey (Hezhengia bohlini) from two Dinocrocuta gigantea. Image credit: Oscar Sanisidro.

Paleontologists Identify New Species of Saber-Toothed Cat

May 1, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

The newly-identified species — the earliest and most primitive member of the saber-toothed cat genus Amphimachairodus — had craniodental adaptations...

The European sea sturgeon (Acipenser sturio). Image credit: Alexander Francis Lydon.

66-Million-Year-Old Sturgeon Fossil Found in Morocco

Apr 26, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

The new specimen represents the first occurrence of an acipenseriform (sturgeon) fish on the continent of Africa. The European sea sturgeon (Acipenser...

Paleoenvironmental restoration of the fossil locality in the Hasandong Formation and the Testudoolithus aff. curiosa egg clutch. Image credit: Hyunjoo Shin.

110-Million-Year-Old Turtle Eggs Unearthed in South Korea

Apr 24, 2023 by Sergio Prostak

Paleontologists have found a clutch of fossilized turtle eggs in the Lower Cretaceous Hasandong Formation in South Korea. Paleoenvironmental restoration...

Molt remains of feather-feeding beetle larvae intimately associated with downy feather portions from an unidentified theropod dinosaur in Early Cretaceous amber of Spain. Insets show the head with powerful mandibles of one of the larval molts (top) and the pigmentation pattern of feather second order branches (bottom), with the main stem of one feather at the right of the amber fragment. The length of the amber fragment is 6 mm. Image credit: CN IGME-CSIC.

Ancient Beetles Fed on Cast-Offs of Feathered Dinosaurs 105 Million Years Ago

Apr 20, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Vertebrates and arthropods are two of the most successful and frequently fossilized animal groups, but direct evidence of their interaction in deep time...

Life reconstruction of Beesiiwo cooowuse with the pseudosuchian Heptasuchus clarki in the background representing the known fauna from the lower carbonate unit of the Popo Agie Formation, Wyoming, the United States. Image credit: Gabriel Ugueto.

New Species of Rhynchosaur Unearthed in Wyoming

Apr 14, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Paleontologists have identified a new genus and species of hyperodapedontine rhynchosaur from several specimens unearthed in central Wyoming, the United...

Life recontsruction of Palaeochiropteryx bats. Image credit: Obsidian Soul / CC BY-SA 3.0.

52-Million-Year-Old Fossils Identified as Oldest Known Bat Species

Apr 13, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

The Fossil Lake deposits of the Green River Formation of Wyoming in the United States have produced nearly 30 bat fossils over the last 50 years. However,...

Life reconstruction of the head of Diamantinasaurus matildae. Image credit: Elena Marian.

Nearly Complete Skull of Titanosaur Unearthed in Australia

Apr 12, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Titanosaurian sauropod dinosaurs were diverse and abundant throughout the Cretaceous period, with a global distribution. However, few titanosaurian species...

An illustration of an adult male woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) navigates a mountain pass in Arctic Alaska, 17,100 years ago. Image credit: James Havens / University of Alaska Museum of the North.

Woolly Mammoths Carried Highly Evolved Genes Related to Hair, Skin, Fat Metabolism, and Immunity

Apr 10, 2023 by News Staff

In new research, scientists analyzed 23 ancient genomes of woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius), including one of the oldest known specimens at 700,000...

These footprints were left by long-necked sauropod dinosaurs around 100 million years ago. Image credit: Xing et al., doi: 10.1016/j.cretres.2023.105536.

Cretaceous-Period Dinosaur Footprints Found in China

Apr 5, 2023 by News Staff

A new analysis of dinosaur tracks found at a courtyard location in a restaurant in Leshan City, China, indicates that they originate in the track-rich...

An artist’s impression of two Troodon formosus near their nest. Image credit: Alex Boersma / PNAS.

Troodon Nests Were Shared by Multiple Females, Paleontologists Find

Apr 4, 2023 by News Staff

The dinosaur-bird transition is among the most fascinating events in evolutionary history, but several aspects such as changes in reproductive system,...

Reconstruction of Maghriboselache mohamezanei in its habitat. Thylacocephalans, cephalopods with orthoconic conchs, placoderms such as Dunkleosteus and osteichthyans populated the water column during the middle Famennian in the Anti-Atlas of Morocco. Image credit: Klug et al., doi: 10.1186/s13358-023-00266-6.

Devonian Shark-Like Fish Had Unique Sensory Specialization

Apr 3, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Paleontologists have described a new genus and species of broad-snouted chondrichthyan fish from several fossilized specimens found in Morocco. Reconstruction...

With its mouth closed, all of the enormous teeth of Tyrannosaurus rex would be invisible behind its lips. Image credit: Mark Witton.

Lips of Theropod Dinosaurs Covered Their Teeth: Study

Mar 31, 2023 by News Staff

Non-avian theropod dinosaurs such as the iconic Tyrannosaurus rex have long been portrayed with their teeth fully visible, similar to living crocodiles....

An artist’s impression of Mukupirna nambensis living in central Australia that was much greener 25 million years ago. Image credit: Peter Schouten.

Strange Wombat Relative Once Lived in Australia

Mar 30, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Mukupirna fortidentata looked a bit like a modern wombat crossed with a marsupial lion (Thylacoleo carnifex). An artist’s impression of Mukupirna nambensis...

Life reconstruction of Ektopodon serratus (top left), a relative of Chunia pledgei, and the marsupial lion Wakaleo oldfieldi (right). Image credit: Peter Schouten / CC BY-SA.

Bizarre Possum Species Lived in Australia 25 Million Years Ago

Mar 29, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

A new species of ektopodontid possum has been described from Oligocene-age fossils found in central Australia. Life reconstruction of Ektopodon serratus...

A partial skull fossil from the ancient beaver Anchitheriomys buceei (right) alongside a skull reconstruction. Image credit: Matthew Brown / Jackson School Museum of Earth History, the University of Texas at Austin.

Fossils of Large Beaver Species Unearthed in Texas

Mar 28, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Paleontologists from the University of Texas at Austin have identified a new species of ancient beaver from the fossilized remains found at several sites...

Selaginella bryopteris in Royal Botanical Garden of Madrid, Spain. Image credit: Luis Fernández García / CC BY-SA 2.1 ES.

Earth’s Earliest Land Plants Were Branched, New Research Suggests

Mar 28, 2023 by News Staff

Diverse branching forms have evolved multiple times across the tree of life to facilitate resource acquisition and exchange with the environment. As an...

Life reconstruction of Dama celiae in the Manzanares valley, Spain; other species present are Anas platyrhynchos, Equus ferus, Elephas antiquus, Mauremys leprosa, Bison sp., Bos primigenius, and Stephanorhinus hemitoechus. Image credit: J. Gamarra.

Fallow Deer with Two-Pointed Antlers Lived alongside Neanderthals

Mar 27, 2023 by Enrico de Lazaro

Paleontologists have described an extinct species of the fallow deer genus Dama from fossils found in Spain. Life reconstruction of Dama celiae in the...

Life reconstruction of Thylacosmilus atrox. Image credit: Jorge Blanco.

Study: Thylacosmilus atrox Adapted to View the World in Unique Way

Mar 22, 2023 by News Staff

Paleontologists from the American Museum of Natural History, the Instituto Argentino de Nivología, Glaciología y Ciencias Ambientales and CONICET investigated...

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