Latest news with #Enigmacursormollyborthwickae
International Business Times
07-07-2025
- Science
- International Business Times
From Rocks to Roars: Dog-Sized Dinosaur Unearthed from Colorado Rock Formation
A latest journal article, published in Royal Society Open Science, revealed that researchers have unearthed a new species of dinosaur from the famed Morrison Formation in Colorado. According to the article, scientists have named the speedy, dog-sized dinosaur Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae. The Natural History Museum in London has its skeleton, or what fossil hunters could find of it in Moffat County, on display. The news release from the museum stated that the scientists said the dinosaur discovered was only about 1 meter long, but there are signs that it wasn't fully grown. The National Park Service said that the Morrison Formation of sedimentary rock from the late Jurassic period is named after the Colorado town but spans across the western United States. Susannah Maidment, one of the lead authors of the Royal Society Open Science article and a researcher with London's Natural History Museum, said, "While the Morrison Formation has been well-known for a long time, most of the focus has been on searching for the biggest and most impressive dinosaurs," adding, "Smaller dinosaurs are often left behind, meaning there are probably many still in the ground." Between 2021 and 2022, Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae bones were discovered on the Skull Creek Estates, a private Colorado land near Dinosaur. According to the London Museum, Maidment and her co-author, Paul Barrett, discovered the fossils after they were sold by a commercial dealer and eventually found their way to a London art gallery. The partial skeleton was initially identified by scientists as belonging to the plant-eating dinosaur Nanosaurus, which was found in 1877. The press release stated that Maidment and Barrett started to investigate further and found that the Nanosaurus label was ill-defined and based more on preserved dinosaur impressions than actual bones. Maidment stated, "Now, however, we have found hundreds of small dinosaurs from all over the world and know that the fossils of Nanosaurus just aren't that useful, let alone enough to name a species with." "As a result, it made sense to put them to one side and name Enigmacursor as a new species instead," she added. She concluded that there are probably a lot of tiny dinosaurs out there that are just waiting to be properly identified in museum collections or discovered underground, including Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae.
Time of India
27-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Dog-sized dinosaur fossil that roamed among giants, discovered by scientists
Source: CNN Scientists have uncovered fossils of a new dog-sized dinosaur species that lived alongside some of the largest dinosaurs ever known. This remarkable discovery sheds light on the diversity of prehistoric life and how smaller dinosaurs coexisted with gigantic species millions of years ago. According to The BBC , a study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science has identified this new dinosaur species, Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae, which was roughly the size of a Labrador retriever, with its tail making up half its length. It was originally classified as a Nanosaurus, but scientists now conclude it is a distinct species. The dinosaur is currently on display in the Natural History Museum (NHM) Discovery of a unique dinosaur Source: The BBC The newly identified dinosaur, named Enigmacursor- meaning 'puzzling runner' - was roughly the size of a modern-day dog. It was relatively small, measuring 64 cm in height and 180 cm in length, comparable to a Labrador retriever, but distinguished by its larger feet and long tail. It co-existed with dinosaurs like Stegosaurus and is estimated to have lived 150 million years ago. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Memperdagangkan CFD Emas dengan salah satu spread terendah? IC Markets Mendaftar Undo The scientists questioned the classification, so they visited the US to examine the original Nanosaurus specimen. However, they found that the specimen was incomplete, consisting of only a rock with bone impressions, making it impossible to confirm its identity. Coexisting with other giant dinosaurs Source: The BBC Despite its small stature, this dinosaur was a thriving part of the ecosystem, running around the feet of enormous herbivorous and carnivorous dinosaurs. Its discovery provides new insights into how smaller species adapted to survive alongside massive contemporaries, highlighting a complex prehistoric environment. The discovery of dinosaurs is of great significance for paleontology Source: The BBC The momentous discovery adds to scientists' knowledge of dinosaur diversity, evolution, and behavior. It also challenges the notion that only larger dinosaurs could dominate these ecosystems and provides evidence that smaller species played very important roles. The discovery also continues to provide important data for examining deep-time evolutionary relationships. Also read | Shocking discovery! 230 giant viruses found lurking in Earth's oceans; scientists say
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
New dog-sized dinosaur species discovered
Sign up for CNN's Wonder Theory science newsletter. Explore the universe with news on fascinating discoveries, scientific advancements and more. Scientists have discovered a new species of dinosaur — one that was dog-sized and roamed what is now the United States around 150 million years ago alongside familiar dinosaurs like stegosaurus and diplodocus. The Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae, as researchers named it, was about the same size as a Labrador retriever, with a tail that made up about half of its length, according to a study published in the Royal Society Open Science on Wednesday. Although many of its bones were unearthed from the Morrison Formation in Colorado in 2021-2022, its skull and parts of its vertebral column were missing, leaving scientists unsure of its precise length. 'These very small plant-eating dinosaurs are pretty rare (to find),' Professor Paul Barrett, a researcher at London's Natural History Museum who co-led the study, told CNN. 'Actually finding a substantially completed skeleton rather than a few bits and pieces of bones is not common and as a result they're fairly poorly known.' The skeleton will be displayed at the Natural History Museum from June 26. This dinosaur was quite 'lightly built' and weighed around the same as a collie, said Barrett. It was a herbivore and would have walked on its long hind legs, which 'suggests it was quite a speedy runner' allowing it to make a 'quick getaway' from predators, Barrett added. He and his colleague, Susannah Maidment, began investigating this specimen after a London art gallery, which was displaying the dinosaur, got in contact with them. They were eventually able to work with the gallery to find a donor who could help bring the skeleton to the museum. The species name honors that donor, Molly Borthwick, while the genus name is Latin for 'mysterious runner.' By carefully examining the bones, Maidment and Barrett concluded that this specimen had unique characteristics unlike any other previously known species. In particular, its thigh bone was particularly distinctive, with different sorts of muscle attachments than other dinosaurs, Barrett said. It is most closely related to Yandusaurus hongheenis, a three-meter- (9.8-foot) long dinosaur that has been found in China. This suggests the species was widely distributed, Barrett said, hypothesizing that other fossils of it simply haven't been found yet. Scientists believe this specimen was not yet fully grown as some of its vertebrae had not yet fused but, because of the way the fossil was prepared before it came to the Natural History Museum, they can't be certain. It is also not clear how the dinosaur died because there aren't any obvious signs of illness or injury in its bones. New species of dinosaurs are unearthed or identified relatively frequently, about once a week, said Barrett. But finding small dinosaurs like this is much rarer, partly because they're overlooked by fossil hunters searching for bigger, more impressive dinosaurs and partly because smaller skeletons are more likely to be ripped apart by predators and scavengers. Finding these smaller dinosaurs which are often left in the ground 'gives us a more complete idea of what those ecosystems were like,' Barrett said.
Yahoo
25-06-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Meet Enigmacursor: New dinosaur species unveiled at London's Natural History Museum
It's just 64cm tall - but this newly discovered dinosaur is causing big excitement at the Natural History Museum. The Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae was a nimble, plant-eating dinosaur that roamed western North America around 150 million years ago, during the late Jurassic period. Despite living among prehistoric heavyweights like Stegosaurus and Diplodocus, this little runner likely darted between their feet. Its fossil was initially misidentified as a "nanosaurus" - a murky name dating back to the 1870s - until closer analysis revealed it as an entirely new species. Named for its puzzling classification history ('Enigma') and its long-legged agility ('cursor'), the Enigmacursor helps bridge a key evolutionary gap between early ornithischians and their larger, weirder relatives like Stegosaurus and Triceratops. A skeleton of the Enigmacursor is now on display at the Natural History Museum, with full research published in Royal Society Open Science. Take a closer look this fascinating dinosaur skeleton in the video player above.
Euronews
25-06-2025
- Science
- Euronews
Meet Enigmacursor: New dinosaur species unveiled in London
It's just 64cm tall - but this newly discovered dinosaur is causing big excitement at the Natural History Museum. The Enigmacursor mollyborthwickae was a nimble, plant-eating dinosaur that roamed western North America around 150 million years ago, during the late Jurassic period. Despite living among prehistoric heavyweights like Stegosaurus and Diplodocus, this little runner likely darted between their feet. Its fossil was initially misidentified as a "nanosaurus" - a murky name dating back to the 1870s - until closer analysis revealed it as an entirely new species. Named for its puzzling classification history ('Enigma') and its long-legged agility ('cursor'), the Enigmacursor helps bridge a key evolutionary gap between early ornithischians and their larger, weirder relatives like Stegosaurus and Triceratops. A skeleton of the Enigmacursor is now on display at the Natural History Museum, with full research published in Royal Society Open Science. Take a closer look this fascinating dinosaur skeleton in the video player above.
