Paleontogly

A new species of tyrannosaurine dinosaur that lived about 79.5 million years ago (Cretaceous period) has been identified from fossils found in Alberta, Canada. Thanatotheristes degrootorum. Image credit: Julius Scotonyi, Royal Tyrrell Museum. “We are thrilled to announce the first new species of tyrannosaur to be discovered in Canada in …

Paleontologists in Germany have found the 150-million-year-old fossilized remains of the extremely rare squid Plesioteuthis subovata preserved with a tooth of a pterosaur species called Rhamphorhynchus muensteri. Reconstruction of the hunting behavior of Rhamphorhynchus muensteri, flying close to the water surface to grab soft-bodied cephalopods such as Plesioteuthis subovata that …

A new species of marine reptile from the Triassic period has been identified from fossils found in southeastern Alaska, the United States. An artist’s depiction of Gunakadeit joseeae. Image credit: Ray Troll. Thalattosaurs (meaning ‘ocean lizards’) were among several reptile lineages that adapted to marine life in the Mesozoic era. …

A new species of carnivorous theropod dinosaur has been identified from the fossilized remains discovered in the 1990s in northeastern Utah and Wyoming, the United States. A group of Allosaurus jimmadseni attacks a juvenile sauropod dinosaur. Image credit: Todd Marshall. The newly-discovered dinosaur belongs to Allosauridae, a group of small to …

An international team of researchers has found the microscopic fungal filaments and mycelium-like structures in dolomitic shale from the Democratic Republic of Congo. The microfossils are at least 715 million years old (Neoproterozoic Era), making them 255 million years older than the next oldest fungi fossil. High-resolution SEM micrograph of …

The exceptionally preserved fossils of the oldest species of scorpion ever found have been unearthed in Wisconsin, the United States. Reconstruction of Parioscorpio venator. Structures outlined in gray are inferred based on Proscorpius osborni. Structures highlighted with gray infilling are the preserved elements of the pulmonary-cardiovascular system. Image credit: Wendruff …

Paleontologists in China have identified a new species of microraptorine dromaeosaur closely related to the famous dinosaur Velociraptor. An artist’s rendering of what Wulong bohaiensis might have looked like. Image credit: Erick Toussaint. The newly-discovered dinosaur lived during the Cretaceous period, approximately 120 million years ago. Named Wulong bohaiensis, the …

Paleontologists from the University of Missouri have discovered the well-preserved digestive tracts in the fossils of microscopic animals called cloudinomorphs. The worm-like animals lived during the Ediacaran period, some 550 million years ago. The fossilized cloudinomorph Costatubus bibendi from the Wood Canyon Formation, Nye County, Nevada, the United States. Image …

The fossilized fruiting bodies of a myxomycete from the extant genus Stemonitis preserved in Kachin amber date back some 100 million years (mid-Cretaceous period) and represent the oldest record of myxomycetes known to date. Overview of the Kachin amber specimen showing the close proximity of the myxomycete sporocarps (arrowhead) and …

Lush green forests grew on Ellesmere and Axel Heiberg islands of the Canadian High Arctic 56 million years ago (Paleocene-Eocene boundary), according to a new study published in the journal Palaeontographica Abteilung B. Dr. West hunts for fossils using a rock hammer to split apart shale on Ellesmere Island. Image …