Expert identification of the T-rex’s cousin, what is it like?

KOMPAS.com – New research has identified a dinosaur skull discovered 40 years ago as a new species of Tyrannosaurus and perhaps the closest relative of the iconic predator Tyrannosaurus rex.

This research also adds to the long-standing debate over how many species of tyrannosaurs there were.

Read also: Study reveals what the T-rex cousin ate when he was alive

However, studies can help clarify how they evolved.

A new species of tyrannosaurus

Quoting New Scientist, on Saturday (1/13/2024) the T-rex appeared in North America about 68 million years ago or 2 million years before the mass extinction that wiped out most of the dinosaurs.

Some argue that T. rex’s ancestors crossed a land bridge from prehistoric Asia, while others attribute its origins to southern North America.

To find out, Anthony Fiorillo of the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science and his colleagues re-examined the museum’s collection of fossils, which were found in a rock layer known as the McRae Group in western New Mexico.

And this is how the story of the discovery of this new species of tyrannosaur begins.

While examining a skull initially classified as a T-rex, researchers noticed differences in the bones.

They argue that the specimen represents a more ancient and primitive species than T-rex.

So researchers argue that Tyrannosaurus existed in North America millions of years earlier than paleontologists thought.

This new study will eventually spark further debate about how many tyrannosaur species existed in North America.

Read also: How many T-rexes lived on Earth before they became extinct?

The specimen was later given the name Tyrannosaurus mcraeensis, in reference to the rock where it was found.

Researchers estimate that the dinosaur was about 12 meters long, comparable to the size of a T-rex.

Researchers estimate that Tyrannosaurus mcraeensis lived between 71 and 73 million years ago, or about 4 million years before T-rex.

The differences between T-rex and T. mcraeensis are actually relatively subtle.

Although T. rex had prominent eyebrow protrusions and large, bone-crushing jaws, those same protrusions on T. mcraeensis were less developed and its skull was more slender.

Regardless of the species assigned, the existence of T. mcraeensis several million years before T-rex suggests that North America was a major center for dinosaur evolution.

According to the Independent, experts also believe this raises the possibility that many more new tyrannosaur discoveries could be made.

“Age dating of the T. mcraeensis specimen requires further research as it could paint a clearer picture of dinosaur evolution in the last million years of the Cretaceous period,” said Jared Voris of the University of Calgary in Canada .

The study was published in Scientific Reports.

Read also: What did the lips of the T-rex dinosaur look like?

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2024-01-14 01:32:00
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