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February 22nd, 2012
Whilst body fossils (such as bones, shells, teeth) are often what one immediately thinks of when someone mentions fossils, trace fossils are equally important in assessment of extinct life. While macro- and microfossils are the dead remains of organisms, trace fossils such as burrows and trackways tell us what extinct organisms were like during life, and are thus invaluable to palaeontologists. The latest extraordinary trackways come from the Miocene of the United Arab Emirates, and represent a herd of at least 13 elephants. From these trackways, it has been inferred that the ancestors of modern elephants exhibited both strong social structure, as well as solidarity, possibly in the alpha male of the represented herd. Occurrences like this are critical in understanding the complex social histories of modern animals, especially those so crucial to modern ecosystems.

Febraury 20th, 2012
Palaeontologist's can look at modern analogues to infer how certain parts of a fossil animal may have looked that may not have been preserved (such as soft tissues), and from that infer the function and life habits of extinct organisms. The latest such analysis involves looking at a spectacular extant archosaur, the American alligator, Alligator mississippiensis. Using anatomical dissections and computed tomography (CT) scanning, the authors of this study looked at the respiratory system and compared it to that of the other dominant group of extant archosaurs, the birds (or avian theropods). It was revealed that the similarity between alligator and bird lungs is striking in many respects, and that the homology between the two represents the plesiomorphic condition for Archosauria. This has important implications in inferring crucial evolutionary steps such as the mechanical adaptations to powered flight in birds.
Ref: Paper (paywalled) SV-POW coverage

February 15th, 2012
The Solnhofen Limestone in Germany is perhaps the most famous fossil lagerstatte of all time, yielding perhaps the most famous fossils of all time of Archaeopteryx lithographica. Rhamphorynchus is a pterosaur from the same deposits, and has a hotly debated life history. Typically, morphological analyses of this genus have suggested it has a slow crocodile-like ontogenetic trajectory, and previous histological studies have been on inadequate samples. A new study shows the results of bone microstructure analysis of an ontogenetic series of Rhamphorynchus, suggesting that hatchlings were incapable of flight (the non-volant hypothesis). Furthermore, the study suggests that the onset of powered flight triggered the start of a slower bone growth rate, not reproductive maturity as previously postulated.
Ref: Free Paper   

February 10th, 2012
Recently a plesiosaur (not a swimming dinosaur, but a marine reptile!) has been discovered in Peterborough, UK. It is believed this specimen may be up to 80% complete, the excavation of this animal has begun. 

February 8th, 2012
Late Cretaceous dinosaurs are probably the most iconic of all those that lived during the Mesozoic, including common household names such as Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops horridus. However, there are numerous bizarre forms that lived along side these. New specimens of the enigmatic oviraptorid theropod Nemegtomaia barsboldi have been uncovered from southern Mongolia, and are preserved in a brooding position on top of a clutch of eggs, an extremely rare preservational occurrence. This represents the fourth oviraptorid genus found associated with eggs through brooding, strongly contradicting early reconstructions of these dinosaurs  as egg thieves (hence the name of the group). Furthermore, these fossils show postmortem damage by beetles prior to complete burial.
Ref: Free Paper  

February 4th, 2012
Until now, taxonomic and phylogenetic evaluations in fossils have relied predominantly on hard tissues, such as bones, teeth, or shells. Now, it appears that soft-tissue remains such as skin impressions contain similar information too. Phil Bell of the University of Alberta, Canada, studied hadrosaur (Dinosauria: Ornithopoda) skin impressions, the results of exceptional preservation. Comparing two species of Saurolophus, he used the geometry and architecture of the scales to taxonomically distinguish two species that are formally delimited previously based purely on osteological data. This is useful, as now soft-tissue can be incorporated into future cladistic analyses of dinosaurs.

February 1st, 2012
Archosauromorphs are a group of organisms that include crocodiles, birds and non-avian dinosaurs. During the Mesozoic, they were without question the dominant group on the planet. A major question for palaeontologists concerns how this dominance arose. Now, Sookias et al. have looked at trait differences between terrestrial Triassic archosauromorphs and then-contemporary basal synapsids, principally testing to see the effect that body mass variation had through time. The previous assertion that Cope's rule (a within- lineage trend of body size increase) is dominant within terrestrial vertebrates is rejected via a number of statistical procedures. Instead, it is found that passive processes are prevalent in controlling these taxonomic and ecomorphological processes, and that achosauromorphs ascended to dominance via opportunistic replacement of therapsids following extinctions, instead of competitive exclusion, facilitated by an increase in body size.
Ref: Paper, blog by Roland and article by Brian Switek

January 24th, 2012
Dinosaur nesting sites are excruciatingly rare, but provide a unique opportunity to decipher clues about dinosaurian reproductive biology and early growth. Continuing previous research, Reisz et al. further demonstrate the significance of a Massospondylus nesting site from the Early Jurassic of southern Africa, by constructing a temporally-calibrated optimization of dinosaurian reproductive biology. They provide insight into reproductive mechanisms in sauropods prior to the evolution of gigantism, as well as early parental care dynamics. Additionally, the egg clutches suggest that certain derived avian reproductive features (e.g., enlarged clutch volumes, brooding) evolved prior only amongst the theropod lineage.
Ref: http://bit.ly/AzO8qn and post by head author http://bit.ly/xlz3Vj  


January 24th, 2012
Archaeopteryx lithographica is perhaps the most iconic fossil of all time, representing a critical species in our understanding of the dinosaur-bird transition. Now, it appears that it's plumage may have been entirely black, aiding it's reconstruction. Carney et al. studied the morphological structure of melanin-bearing organelles called melanosomes in an isolated Archaeopteryx feather, comparing it to a diverse dataset of extant birds. They concluded that the entire feather was black and, furthermore, that the presence of these structures may have provided structural support in the wings during early flight evolution.

January 20th, 2012
Within pachycephalosaurids (the dome-headed ornithischian dinosaurs), structures previously described as abdominal ribs or gastralia have been reinterpreted in terms of their architecture as myorhabdoid ossifications (tendons associated with myomeres). These structures are unique amongst all other tetrapods, and only found elsewhere in teleost fish, and they are histologically and structurally disparate from the typical ossified tendons associated with other ornithischian clades.

January 19th, 2012
The Burgess Shale deposits of British Columbia, Canada, are infamous for their rich deposits of early animal life, and specifically for preserving the 'soft-parts' of those animals. A new enigmatic stalked organism, Siphusauctum gregarium, with 1,133 specimens known, has been recently described in the open-access journal PLoS One. S. gregarium was probably a filter-feeter based on it's morphology, and even structures such as the stomach, gut, and intestine are preserved. It's phylogenetic affinities are still uncertain, as are many of those from the Burgess Shale.
Ref: hhttp://bit.ly/x8jKdx (FREE paper)

January 18, 2012
A Kent State University researcher has co-authored a new publication describing a hermit crab from the Cretaceous Period, called Mesoparapylocheles michaeljacksoni, the new species honours legendary singer Michael Jackson. 

January 16, 2012
A 'treasure trove' of fossils, including some collected by Charles Darwin have been re-discovered in an old cabinet at the British Geological Survey HQ near Keyworth, UK. Some of the material includes thinly cut and polished sections of wood, including the one pictured below. 


Image from link above.

January 11th, 2012
Using advanced muscular and skeletal modelling techniques, a team of palaeontologists reconstructed the locomotory mechanics of the basal ornithschian, Lesothosaurus diagnosticus. They found that locomotor musculature and abilities of Lesothosaurus probably represents a basal dinosaurian condition, disparate to that of extant avian theropods. The novel techniques used are important for understanding the precise biomechanical evolution of extinct organisms.
 
January 5, 2012
A newly named ichthyosaur, Acamptonectes densus has been described by Valentin Fischer and others. The newly described ichthyosaur is known from three specimens, they were found at Speeton in England and Cremlingen, Germany.
 
 
January 4, 2012
Leaping lizards and dinosaurs inspire robot design. A group of biologists and engineers (including students) from the University of California, Berkeley, have studied how lizards manage to leap successfully even when they slip and stumble. This has also taken a look at dinosaurs, and how they may have also used their tails as stabilizers. Check out the video and further info at the link below.
 
 
December 15, 2011
Three renowned French paleontologists have stressed for more research in the field of biodiversity history and paleontology in Pakistan.
 
 
Dec 8, 2011

The first giant titanosaurian dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of New Mexico, North America has been described. Two enormous vertebrae and a partial femur are referred to Alamosaurus sanjuanensis. This new discovery may present the biggest dinosaur discovered in North America, although the size range has previously been suggested for Supersaurus vivianae. 

Ref: http://www.voanews.com/english/news/science-technology/Paleontologists-Find-Biggest-Dinosaur-in-North-America-135282703.html
 
 
 
Nate Carroll, left, and Liz Freedman, a doctoral student in Jack Horner’s paleontology laboratory, pose with the complete reconstruction of the cervical (neck) vertebra of an Alamosaurus. Image copyright: Denver Fowler.
 
 
Dec 7, 2011
A new study looking at the exceptionally preserved eyes of Anomalocaris -  dubbed the first super predator - have been published. Results suggest that Anomalocaris posessed highly acute vision, with each eye 3 cm in length and containing over 16,000 lenses.
 
Reconstruction of Anomalocaris. Image copyright: Nobumichi Tamura.
 
 
Dec 6, 2011
A new ceratopsian dinosaur has been described from remains collected over 90 years ago. Spinops sternbergorum was discovered in Alberta, Canada in 1916. The remains have been stored in the Natural History Museum, London.
 
 
 
Image reconstruction of Spinops sternbergorum. Image copyright Dmitry Bogdanov.
 
 
Nov 24, 2011

Maggy Horvath, a staff member of Syncrude, one of the largest producers of crude oil from Canada's oil sands, has made a fantastic fossil discovery; a near complete plesiosaur. The specimen will be excavated by staff of the Royal Tyrell Museum. 

Press release: http://business.financialpost.com/2011/11/24/syncrude-unearths-rare-fossil-in-oil-sands/

 
 
Nov 21, 2011
University Rhode Island (URI) palaeontologist, David Fastovsky has published details of a fossilised nest, consisting of 15 juvenile Protoceraptops andrewsi specimens. The paper has been published in the latest edition of the Journal of Paleontology.
 
 

 

Image taken from above link.

 

 

Nov 17, 2011

A new study suggests volcanic eruptions and meteorite strikes likely caused the mass-extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous period, the new study rejects that a single meterorite was responsible

Ref: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0012821X11004791

Press release: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/11/111117141201.htm

 

 

Nov 14, 2011

Several fossil whales, sharks and dolphins have been discovered in Chile. Many of the whales are complete, one of the scientists said 15 whales were found in 15 days, astonishing. Watch the video below to learn more about this exciting find.

Press release: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-latin-america-15723254

 

 
Nov 6, 2011
Save Bracklesham Bay to Selsey fossils! Taken from link below - The ‘Save Bracklesham to Selsey Beach for ALL’ group states online: “This is more of a disaster for amateur and professional geologists and palaeontologists, as the stretch of beach from Bracklesham to Selsey is one of the few easily-accessible and very productive Eocene (fossil) sites.
 
 
Nov 4, 2011
Skulls of mammals have been reported from the Late Cretaceous of northern Patagonia, Argentina. The newly described mammal has been called Cronopio dentiacutus, it was around 4-6 inches in length.
 
 
 
Artist's depiction of Cronopio dentiacutus. (Credit: Illustration by Jorge Gonzalez)
 
Nov 3, 2011
Humans were living in England as long as 44,000 years ago - far earlier than previously thought.
 
 
Oct 20, 2011
The 11th Archaeopteryx has been discovered! The specimen is beautifull preserved, missing only the skull.
 
 
 
Image courtesy of Helmut Tischlinger
 
Oct 14, 2011
Worlds largest toothed pterosaur described on the basis of an incomplete rostrum. The rostrum belongs to the pterosaur Coloborhynchus capito from the Cambridge Greensand (Late Cretaceous).
 
 
 
Image reconstruction of Coloborhynchus by Mark Witton of www.markwitton.com
 
Oct 14, 2011

A re-evaluation of the large predatory dinosaur Carnotaurus has helped to determine the dinosaur was a lot deadlier than originally thought. University of Alberta palaeontology graduate student Scott Persons has suggested it was one of the fastest predators of its time.

Press release: http://www.news.ualberta.ca/article.aspx?id=001ED6E9DEA445FCACE696A9DDA3E5BB
 
 
Oct 13, 2011
A new unamed 98% complete juvenile theropod has been discovered in the central Bavarian community of Kelheim, southern Germany and dates to the early Cretaceous around 135 million years old. The new theropod has been touted as the best ever found in Europe.
 
 
 
Oct 13, 2011
Oldest fossil rodents discovered in South America. The remains of teeth pertaining to rodents were found in sediments dating to around 41 million years old dating to the middle Eocene, they were found along the Ucayali River near Contamana, Peru.
 
 
 
 Teeth of one of the new fossil rodents. (Credit: Laurent Marivaux)
 
Oct 12, 2011
New species of fossil lacewing called Undulopsychopsis alexi described from China.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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