A 265 million year old fossil discovered in South America provides new insight into a large predatory species that roamed the earth long before dinosaurs appeared.
This species is called “Pampaphoneus biccai”. According to a press release From the Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard University. These creatures “took over” South America 40 million years before dinosaurs roamed the planet. According to a press release and A study published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean SocietyResearchers from around the world have discovered a “remarkably well-preserved” collection of 265-million-year-old fossils of these creatures.
The fossil species was discovered in São Gabriel, a rural area in southern Brazil. The fossil includes a “complete skull and several bones,” according to the press release, including ribs and an arm. Paleontologists from the Paleontological Laboratory of the Federal University of Pampa and the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul took a month to collect the fossils. Researchers then spent three years cleaning and studying the skull.
Researchers at the excavation site. / Credit: Photo by Felipe Pinheiro
“This animal is a strange-looking animal, and it certainly inspires a strong fear of anything that crosses its path,” said study co-author Stephanie Pierce, a professor in Harvard’s Department of Evolutionary Biology. At the school’s Museum of Comparative Zoology. “This discovery is key to providing a glimpse into the community structure of terrestrial ecosystems before the largest mass extinction ever occurred. A stunning discovery that shows the global importance of Brazil’s fossil record.”
Pampaphoneus biccai is part of a clade or group of creatures that have the same ancestor. There are four main branches of the period in which these creatures existed, and they are part of the Deinocephalian clade, which had thick skull bones and were large land animals found in South Africa and Russia. Researchers say that Pampaphoneus bccai is the only known dinosaur species from Brazil. Researchers estimate that Pampaphoneus biccai could have reached a length of nearly three meters and weighed about 400 kilograms, or more than 880 pounds.
Skull of a new Pampaphoneus biccai specimen. / Credit: Photo by Felipe Pinheiro
This is the second skull discovered in South America, according to a press release. The newly discovered skull is larger than the first and provides researchers with “unprecedented information about its shape due to the extraordinary preservation of its bones.”
“Pampaphonus played the same ecological role as modern big cats,” said lead researcher Felipe Pinheiro, head of the laboratory and professor at the Federal University of Pampa. “It was the largest land predator we know of from the Permian period in South America. This animal has large, sharp tusks adapted for catching prey. Its teeth and skull structure suggest that its bite was strong enough to chew through bone, like many modern animals.” Afternoon hyena.”
Fugitive killer Danilo Cavalcanti was arrested by police in Pennsylvania
CBS Mornings Deals is offering extra exclusive discounts this week, with products at least 40% off.
Graham Norton on his new novel, “Forever Home”
2023-09-13 14:41:58
#Fossils #reveal #evillooking #predators #roamed #earth #dinosaurs
