Latest news with #Tyrannosaurs
Time of India
20-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Meet the 'Dragon Prince': New dinosaur discovery rewrites the Tyrannosaur family tree
A fascinating fossil discovery in Mongolia has uncovered a new species of dinosaur that could reshape everything we thought we knew about the evolution of Tyrannosaurs. Named Khankhuuluu Mongoliensis, or "Dragon Prince of Mongolia", this 86-million-year-old predator is now considered the closest known ancestor of the fearsome Tyrannosaurus rex. With its transitional traits and smaller size, the find reveals a crucial evolutionary chapter between small, agile hunters and the massive apex predators that ruled the Late Cretaceous. Scientists say the discovery, buried for decades in a museum collection, offers fresh insight into how Tyrannosaurs evolved their powerful bite, skull shape, and dominant ecological role in both Asia and North America. A dinosaur fossil of 'Dragon Price' hidden in plain sight The partial skeletons that led to this discovery were actually excavated in Mongolia back in the 1970s. At the time, they were thought to belong to a species called Alectrosaurus. It wasn't until PhD student Jared Voris took a closer look, decades later, that the unique features of this new species began to emerge. Working alongside Professor Darla Zelenitsky from the University of Calgary, Voris spotted key differences in the skull and nasal bones that clearly separated it from other known dinosaurs. What is Khankhuuluu Mongoliensis Named after the word for 'dragon' in Mongolian and the region it was found in, Khankhuuluu Mongoliensis bridges a crucial gap in the Tyrannosaur timeline. Weighing around 750 kilograms, it was far smaller than the T. rex, which could tip the scales at over 6 tonnes. But it had key traits that hint at the future kings of the dinosaur world. Its skull showed signs of strengthening, and its jaw was developing the structure needed for the bone-crushing bite Tyrannosaurs are known for. The evolution of Tyrannosaurs Early members of the Tyrannosaur family were small, quick-footed hunters living in the shadows of larger meat-eaters. Khankhuuluu represents a shift from these agile predators towards the bulkier, more powerful giants of the Late Cretaceous. With stronger jaws and a larger build than its predecessors, it shows how evolution favoured size and strength over time. These adaptations eventually led to the dominance of species like T. rex, which could take down massive prey and even crush bones. A journey across continents Another important insight from this discovery is the role of ancient land bridges between Asia and North America. During the Late Cretaceous period, areas like Siberia and Alaska were connected, allowing species like Tyrannosaurs to migrate and evolve in new environments. This movement helped spark the emergence of distinct groups on different continents, explaining how similar predators could be found in both Asia and North America. Rewriting the family tree With the addition of Khankhuuluu Mongoliensis to the record, palaeontologists now have a clearer picture of how Tyrannosaurs evolved. It fills a key gap between the small early forms and the gigantic predators that came later. The findings, published in the journal Nature, could prompt scientists to revisit other old fossils that may have been misclassified. This discovery serves as a reminder that sometimes the answers to big questions have been waiting quietly in storage. What museum collections can still teach us What makes this story even more remarkable is that the fossil had been sitting in a Mongolian museum for over 40 years. It highlights how valuable museum collections are and how new techniques, fresh perspectives and even young researchers can uncover major breakthroughs from existing specimens. Not every discovery requires a dig, some are hidden in plain sight. Before the kings, there were princes The discovery of Khankhuuluu Mongoliensis gives us a rare look at the early days of a dynasty. While this dinosaur didn't have the size or fearsome presence of its famous descendants, it carried the building blocks of what would become one of Earth's most iconic predators. As Professor Zelenitsky put it, 'Before Tyrannosaurs became the kings, they were princes.' And this dragon prince may just be the missing link we didn't know we needed.
Time of India
12-06-2025
- Science
- Time of India
New dinosaur species, the 'Dragon Prince', discovered — what did it look like?
Representational image Hold onto your fossil hats, dinosaur lovers—there's a new prehistoric rockstar in town, and it goes by a name that sounds like it just flew out of a fantasy novel. Say hello to Khankhuuluu mongoliensis, nicknamed the 'Dragon Prince. ' And yes, it's just as cool as it sounds. The findings have been published in Nature . So, what exactly is Khankhuuluu? This ancient predator stomped around what's now Mongolia about 86 million years ago, way before the iconic Tyrannosaurus rex came on the scene. Khankhuuluu was no tiny lizard—but it definitely wasn't the hulking beast T. rex turned out to be. Think of it as the lean, speedy older cousin that paved the way for future dinosaur royalty. It weighed 750 kilos. The wild part? Scientists actually found Khankhuuluu's fossils back in the 1970s, but they thought it was part of a different species. Fast forward a few decades and some super high-tech scans later, and—boom!—turns out we've had a brand-new species hiding in plain sight this whole time. Talk about a plot twist in the fossil record. What did it look like? Unlike the bulky, bone-crushing T. rex, Khankhuuluu was all about agility. It had a slim build, long legs made for sprinting, and a narrow snout packed with sharp teeth—perfect for snapping up smaller prey like oviraptorosaurs and ornithomimosaurs. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Men Over 50: Frequent Urination & Weak Stream? Do this Before Bed healthydayscare Click Here Undo Picture a fast, fierce dino ninja with a serious attitude. "'Prince' refers to this being an early, smaller tyrannosauroid," explained Prof Darla Zelenitsky, a palaeontologist from the University of Calgary in Canada told BBC. Tyrannosauroids are the superfamily of carnivorous dinosaurs that walked on two legs. "They were these really small, fleet-footed predators that lived in the shadows of other apex predatory dinosaurs," PhD student Jared Voris, who led the research with Prof Zelenitsky, told the media. They added that Khankhuuluu probably weighed around 750 kilos (about 1,650 pounds). Not bad for an early tyrannosaur, right? A dino with a passport? Besides being a missing puzzle piece in the tyrannosaur family tree, Khankhuuluu is also helping scientists figure out where these dinos came from and how they moved around. The new theory? Tyrannosaurs may have started in Asia, made their way to North America, and then boomeranged back to Asia. This epic dino road trip might explain the range of species we've dug up across continents. Why this matters The discovery of the 'Dragon Prince' is more than just another cool name—it's a reminder that our planet's past is full of surprises waiting to be uncovered. Every fossil, every re-examined bone, tells a deeper story about where life came from and how it evolved. So next time someone mentions the mighty T. rex, throw a little respect to its slimmer, faster, older cousin—Khankhuuluu mongoliensis, the prehistoric royalty that sprinted so the king could roar.
The Guardian
11-06-2025
- Science
- The Guardian
Fossils found in 1970s are most recent ancestor of tyrannosaurs, scientists say
Tyrannosaurs might evoke images of serrated teeth, massive bodies and powerful tails, but their most recent ancestor yet discovered was a slender, fleet-footed beast of rather more modest size. Experts say the new species – identified from two partial skeletons – helps fill a gap in the fossil record between the small, early ancestors of tyrannosaurs and the huge predators that evolved later. 'They're almost the immediate ancestor of the family called that we call tyrannosaurs,' said Dr Darla Zelenitsky, co-author of the study at the University of Calgary. Writing in the journal Nature, Zelenitsky and colleagues report how they re-examined fossils unearthed in Mongolia in the early 1970s, and now held at the Institute of Paleontology of the Mongolian Academy of Sciences. The team discovered the 86m-year-old skeletons did not belong to the tyrannosaur ancestor they had previously been identified with, an enigmatic creature called Alectrosaurus olseni. Instead, they belonged to a new species the researchers have called Khankhuuluu mongoliensis, meaning 'Prince of Dragons of Mongolia'. Jared Voris, first author of the research, said the fossils showed signs of some typical tyrannosaur features. However, others were absent. While later predators, such as T rex, could reach colossal sizes, weighing up to 8,000kg, Khankhuuluu was more modest, at about 4 metres in length and weighing about 750kg. Voris said that while humans would have been a mere snack to a T rex, they would have been the perfect prey for Khankhuuluu had they lived at the same time. 'You would have been the thing that it would hunt down, and it would have been faster than you,' he said. 'I would much rather run into an adult T rex than run into Khankhuuluu.' The discovery also sheds light on a group of small, long-nosed tyrannosaurs called Alioramus – often called 'Pinocchio rexes' – that some had proposed might sit closer to the ancestors of tyrannosaurs on the family tree than to T rex and its ilk. However, the new work shows this is not the case. 'We found that their closest relatives are the giant forms like T rex and Tarbosaurus,' said Zelenitsky. The team say that suggests Alioramus was something of a quirk, evolving an exaggerated juvenile tyrannosaur form within a part of the family tree dominated by behemoths. The researchers then used a computer model that incorporated the new tyrannosaur family tree, together with the age and locations of known species, to explore when and where missing relatives would have emerged. This enabled them to unpick the waves of migration made by tyrannosaurs and their ancestors over land bridges between Asia and North America. Zelenitsky noted such movements were found to be less sporadic and frequent than previously thought. The results revealed Khankhuuluu, or closely related species in Asia, migrated to North America where tyrannosaurs subsequently evolved. Some tyrannosaurs later moved back into Asia, where the large Tarbosaurus and smaller Pinocchio rexes emerged. Finally, some huge species of tyrannosaur migrated back to North America, giving rise to T rex and other enormous predators. Prof Steve Brusatte of the University of Edinburgh, who was not involved in the work, said the age of Khankhuuluu was important, given there are so few fossils from that time. Brusatte added the relatively small size of Khankhuuluu showed it was only later that tyrannosaurs became colossal, while the study also reveals a few big migration events back and forth between Asia and North America were the drivers of much of tyrannosaur evolution. 'The tyrannosaur family tree was shaped by migration, just like so many of our human families,' he said.
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
A 20-foot-long ‘mega raptor' once stalked Australia
Modern Australia is known for its array of wildlife: poisonous snakes and spiders, saltwater crocodiles, koalas, kangaroos, and more. The continent was also once home to dinosaurs, including the giant Australotitan and flying pterosaur Haliskia petersensi. Now, paleontologists have found remains of the world's oldest known megaraptorid–aka the 'mega raptor'–and the first evidence of a carcharodontosaurus in Australia. The fossils are described in a study published February 19 in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology and reveal what the predator hierarchy unique to Cretaceous Australia might have looked like. The megaraptorids and carcharodontosaurus were theropod dinosaurs. Theopods were primarily carnivores and walked on two hind legs. They range in size from the small Coelurosaur up to the giant Tyrannosaurs. Several theropod species also had feathers. The mega raptors belonged to a family of large-bodied dinosaurs from the Cretaceous Period (about 125 to 66 million years ago) called Megaraptoridae. They were about 20 feet long and have mostly been found in southern continents. Megaraptorids are known for somewhat small–but sharp–teeth, air-filled bones, and powerful forelimbs with enormous claws. At roughly 45 feet-long, Carcharodontosaurus was among the largest land-dwelling carnivores in our planet's history. It also lived during the Cretaceous and has primarily been found in North Africa until now. Paleontologists uncovered these five new theropod fossils along the coastline in the state of Victoria in southeastern Australia. They were unearthed in the upper Strzelecki Group (about 121.4 to 118 million years old) and the Eumeralla Formation (about 113 to 108 million years old). The fossils suggest that modern-Victoria's ancient ecosystem was dominated by these powerful theropods. 'The discovery of carcharodontosaurs in Australia is groundbreaking,' Jake Kotevski, a study co-author and Museums Victoria Research Institute and Monash University PhD student, said in a statement. 'It's fascinating to see how Victoria's predator hierarchy diverged from South America, where carcharodontosaurs reached Tyrannosaurus rex-like sizes up to 13 metres [42.6 feet], towering over megaraptorids. Here, the roles were reversed, highlighting the uniqueness of Australia's Cretaceous ecosystem.' Two of the fossils represent the world's oldest known mega raptors and expand our understanding of the group's evolutionary history. Australia's theropod fauna could have played a pivotal role in the ecosystems of the ancient supercontinent Gondwana. 'The findings not only expand Australia's theropod fossil record but offer compelling evidence of faunal interchange between Australia and South America through Antarctica during the Early Cretaceous,' Thomas Rich, a senior curator of vertebrate palaeontology at Museums Victoria Research Institute and study co-author, said in a statement. 'The findings also challenge previous assumptions about body-size hierarchies in Gondwanan predator ecosystems highlighting Victoria's unique Cretaceous fauna.' Three of the fossils were uncovered between 2022 and 2023 and were first identified by Museums Victoria volunteer Melissa Lowery. According to the team, this discovery highlights how volunteers and community members working alongside seasoned researchers can help uncover the secrets of Australia's Cretaceous past. The team will also keep surveying these key fossil sites, including the spots where the large megaraptorid fossils were uncovered.
