18-05-2025
- Science
- New Indian Express
220 million-year-old fossils found in Telangana give fresh insights into dinosaur evolution
HYDERABAD: Fossils found near Annaram village in the Pranahita-Godavari Valley have led to the identification of a new dinosaur species, Maleriraptor kuttyi. The bipedal predator lived over 200 million years ago during the Norian stage of the Late Triassic period.
Originally excavated in the 1980s, the remains were analysed and recently described in the journal Royal Society Open Science. The study places Maleriraptor kuttyi within the early dinosaur group Herrerasauria, but outside the South American subgroup Herrerasauridae. It is the first confirmed evidence of a herrerasaurian dinosaur from Gondwana, which included present-day India. It expands the known range of this group beyond South America. All previously confirmed species were found in Argentina and Brazil.
The fossil is catalogued as ISIR 282. Notable features include a vertically oriented pubis and a distinct pelvic structure. Unlike other herrerasaurians, it lacks the broad 'pubic boot', suggesting a separate evolutionary path.
The species name honours the late Indian palaeontologist TS Kutty, who discovered the fossil. The genus name, Maleriraptor, refers to the Upper Maleri Formation, where it was found, and the Latin word for 'thief', indicating its carnivorous nature.
