New Dinosaur Named Janus Discovered: Strong-Jawed Plant-Eating Lani Smithi Lived 99 Million Years Ago

JAKARTA – Scientists discover a new dinosaur named Janus, after the two-faced Roman god. This dinosaur had very strong jaws, lived 99 million years ago.

Paleontologists from North Carolina State University said they excavated the nearly complete skeleton of this young specimen in Utah’s Cedar Mountain Formation, a famous dinosaur burial ground.

“Lani Smithi is a plant eater with giant spatulate or shovel-like teeth,” said Lindsay Zanno, professor at North Carolina State University, quoted by the Daily Mail, Thursday (8/6/2023).

He explained, each tooth was inscribed with 12 secondary ridges. Lani Smithi needs every extra back in her bite to hack through the tough, dense plant matter.

Atmospheric carbon dioxide rose during the mid-Cretaceous, creating a warmer climate and rising oceans. However it also unlocks new plant life.

“This shift to greenery stifled normal food sources for many other plant-eating dinosaur species that were less adaptive than IANI, such as the shifting Janus.”

However, armed with detailed scans of the well-preserved skeleton of the new species and some complex statistical analysis, it was concluded that Iani Smithi was a rare type of dinosaur in North America.

(san)