It has a neck similar to that of a swan, a head similar to that of a duck but walks like a penguin. But it's a dinosaur. To find out was a team of paleontologists, according to which it could be a new species hitherto unknown.
He is about to end up run over, his mother saves himIt has a neck similar to that of a swan, a head similar to that of a duck but walks like a penguin. But it's a dinosaur. To find out was a team of paleontologists, according to which it could be a new species hitherto unknown.
A detailed 3D analysis allowed the researchers to reveal the existence of this bizarre predator that lived 75 million years ago: the Halszkaraptor escuilliei.
The research project sheds light on the bizarre halszkaraptor - a very unusual dinosaur. Its well-preserved skeleton was found in Mongolia and combines an unexpected combination of features belonging to a new group of semi-aquatic predators related to Velociraptor.
The study not only describes a new genus and bird-like dinosaur species that lived during the Cretaceous period in Mongolia, but sheds light on an unexpected amphibious lifestyle for dinosaurs.
Theropods include all carnivorous dinosaurs, including the largest terrestrial predators in the history of life, such as the Tyrannosaurus, and agile hunters such as the Velociraptor. During the 160 million years of the Mesozoic era, theropods became the dominant predators on all continents, but never conquered aquatic environments. Although some theropods also fed on fish, the information available so far does not reveal much about their aquatic locomotion.
This new dinosaur species combines an unexpected mix of characteristics and demonstrates that some bird-like dinosaurs had a semi-aquatic lifestyle. The fossil, nicknamed “Halszka” was found in Ukhaa Tolgod. This location in southern Mongolia has been known to paleontologists for decades and is often targeted by poachers.
"The illicit trade in fossils represents a great challenge for modern paleontology and explains a dramatic loss of Mongolian scientific heritage" says Pascal Godefroit of the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences in Brussels. "Illegally exported from Mongolia, Halszka remained hidden in private collections around the world before it was bought in 2015 and offered to paleontologists."
Although several important groups of predatory dinosaurs have been discovered in Mongolia, Halszka does not belong to any of these and exhibits a number of strange characteristics that are mostly absent among dinosaurs, but are shared by groups of reptiles and birds.
“The first time I examined the specimen, I even doubted that it was a real fossil,” says Andrea Cau of the Capellini Geological Museum in Bologna. Although Halszka is unique in many ways, parts of the skeleton, including the sickle-shaped "killer claws", are shared with famous dinosaurs such as Velociraptors. “This unexpected mix of traits makes it difficult to place Halszka within traditional classifications,” notes Cau.
In order to ascertain the integrity of the fossil, the sample was visualized and reconstructed in three dimensions using an advanced technique, which was also able to examine the internal details without damaging the precious fossil.
Halszkaraptor isn't the only different dinosaur recovered from the Gobi. Many Mongolian theropods were closely related to the new species. United in a new group, called Halszkaraptorinae, it is considered a subfamily of the rapacious dromaeosaurs.
According to the scientists, Halszkaraptor's unique morphology makes it an amphibious predator that has adapted to a combined terrestrial and aquatic ecology - a peculiar lifestyle that had never previously been documented among dinosaurs.
"Thanks to tomography, we now show that the rapacious dinosaurs not only ran and flew but also knew how to swim."
READ also:
- THE BEST PLACES IN THE WORLD TO WALK WITH DINOSAURS
- SHARK-SNAKE: LIVING 'DINOSAUR' DISCOVERED 80 MILLION YEARS AGO
- DINOSAUR EGGS FOUND IN CHINA (VIDEO)
The study was published in Nature.
Francesca Mancuso
