New Study Reveals How Some Dinosaurs Slept

Oct 09, 2012 at 12:58 am

One of the simplest characteristics of dinosaurs that paleontologists still know little about is how they slept.

New studies have shown that when some smaller dinosaurs slept, they curled up much like birds do today. Though most dinosaur fossils are found in the dinosaur “death pose,” some dinosaurs (who have died while they were sleeping) have been found in a roosting position, similar to the sleeping position of most modern birds.

For more on this discovery, visit Smithsonian.com.

New Research on Appearance of First Rodents

Oct 07, 2012 at 1:03 am

For years, scientists have been disputing about the timing of the first appearance of rodents on Earth.

Recent discoveries of two new fossils are evidence that the earliest rodent species began about 57.7 to 58.9 million years ago. Being one of the most diverse species on earth, this rodent discovery is monumental for scientists to continue to determine the first origins of placental mammals.

For more on this discovery, visit the Examiner.

Herbivores Were Great Chewers

Oct 04, 2012 at 12:56 am

Researchers are now discovering that giant plant-eaters, such as Hadrosaurids or a Corythosaurus, may have had teeth with grinding surfaces much like a modern day horse or bison. Their teeth were complex, combining up to six types of tissue, and all varying in hardness. Scientists speculate that this is due to their diets, including tough, tooth-gouging particles from plants.

Researchers believe the complex nature of the herbivores teeth is reason that they were so common.

For more on this discovery, visit NBC News.

New Fanged Dinosaur Discovered

Oct 03, 2012 at 12:55 am

Porcupine quills, big fangs, and a parrot-like beak are only three of the strange qualities that this newly discovered plant-eating dinosaur, known as the Pegomastax africanus, possesses.

This tiny Dino, measuring in at about 2 feet tall, is a newly discovered species of heterodontosaur. It is about the size of a housecat and used its giant fangs for self-defense and for attracting mates.

For more on this discovery, and to check out the making of this Dinosaur model, visit National Geographic.

Fossil of Largest Feathered Creature of All Time Discovered

Sep 22, 2012 at 12:44 am

Fossils discovered in northeastern China of a previously unrecognized huge dinosaur reveal that it was the largest known feathered creature to exist, living or extinct.

The new species, which was at least 30 feet long, was a distant relative of the scaly Tyrannosaurus rex.

The species has been named Yutyrannus huali, which means “beautiful feathered tyrant.”

For more on this discovery, including an artist’s impression of this species, visit The New York Times.

Dinosaur Fossils Show Last Meals in Stomachs

Aug 30, 2012 at 12:53 am

Two Sinocalliopteryx gigas, which are carnivorous dinosaurs about 6 feet long and covered in hair-like fuzz, were discovered in Liaoning, China with evidence of their last meals remaining in their stomachs.

One of the paleontologists working with the specimens stated that stomach remains are “…extremely rare in the fossil record”, so this discovery gives scientists evidence of interaction between dinosaurs. Though it is still unknown whether or not these dinosaurs hunted or scavenged the prey found in their stomachs, it gives scientists a look into their diets.

For more on this discovery, visit the Huffington Post.