Post by raptorx863 on Nov 5, 2013 0:55:33 GMT
So, as you all may know I participated in the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology meeting (SVP) this past week. I'll be posting on my blog all about it and all the people I met sometime soon. What I did want to talk about however was all the new specimens announced at the event, mostly the dinosaurs (but really just about anything from the abstract). I had seats in just about every dinosaur talk going on there and I know about all the new discoveries, including some groundbreaking ones. These all included, but are not limited to:
And finally, probably my favorite:
All the other discoveries are listed in the abstract here, but there are too many to possibly list. What's everyone's thoughts and favorite discovery? Feel free to discuss.
- A new analysis which concluded that Brontosaurus may be a distinct genus from Apatosaurus after all (this is somewhat controversial at the moment)
- The first pterosaur from the Triassic of North America (bunking it with Coelophysis), which seems to be closely related to Eudimorphodon and has a similar dentition
- Seven or more new species of Leatherback turtle from throughout the Cenozoic, effectively doubling the diversity of the genus
- Two new species of sauropodomorph from the same locality in Antarctica as Cryolophosaurus
- A giant species of Abeliosaurid from the Late Cretaceous of Kenya, estimated at the moment to be the same size Tyrannosaurus (11 to 12-ish meters)
- A new specimen of a baby Chasmosaurus articulated and perfectly preserved complete with skin impressions. It is the youngest ceratopsian currently known from North America
- A new locality called Jack's Birthday site which preserves the remains of at least 20 Troodon of all ages, including a 12 year old individual on top of a nest
- The first Allosaurus eggs and embryos ever found in a single area of the Morrison Formation, preserving even perfectly preserved embryonic teeth
- New specimens of "Dracorex" (sadly one of which is currently owned by a private collector) which seem to confirm its status as a juvenile Pachycephalosaurus
- Studies of new and old specimens of primitive ankylosaurids which seem to lay out the early evolution of the ankylosaurid tail club, showing that the fused vertebrae evolved first and that the actual club evolved later on
- Two new species of small ornithopod and a possible new species of Edmontosaurus all from Prince Creek Alaska
- A new species of basal neoceratopsian with what has to have the most wicked-looking beak of any ceratopsian known, looking almost eagle-like
- New analysis of existing pachycephalosaurid domes proves that these animals were NOT highland animals which were then preserved at lower altitudes after dying. Indeed the author found a lot of information suggesting that the opposite was the case, and that North American pachycephalosaurs avoided mountainous areas.
- An analysis of the only known pterosaur bone from Antactica suggests that it may be the most basal known pterosaur, and also shows that it had humerus that was many times thicker for its size than any other pterosaur
- A new ceolophysoid from the Early Jurassic of the Lufeng Formation, extending their range to Asia
- A therizinosaur nesting colony from the western Gobi desert, showing that at least some species weren't mound builders but had social breeding habits and laid open nests
- A new near-complete specimen of Deinocheirus, showing bizarre features we never expected for the species, such as a therizinosaur-like hip and tail and neural spines very similar to spinosaurids and forming a sail along part of the back
- Brand new specimens of Anchiornis showing new features which may suggest that it, Aurornis, Eosinopteryx, and Xiaotingia together form a basal family of deinonychosaurs unique to the region)
- Tons of new species of seabird from the Atlantic coast, including a new species of Pelagornithid which had a 820 mm humerus
- A new species of giant flightless sea duck from Japan related to the now extinct Goose-sized California sea duck Chendytes
And finally, probably my favorite:
- A new species of polar dwarf Tyrannosaurine from Alaska, which is the owner of the infamous tyrannosaurid teeth from Prince Creek. It exhibits clear insular dwarfism from the severe polar climate, and had only about a 600 mm skull and is estimates to be less than 20 ft and 1,000 pounds. Remarkably, features show that it is an adult (or at least close to adult-size) and is very closely related to Tarbosaurus and Tyrannosaurus proper. It's effectively a dwarf T. rex.
All the other discoveries are listed in the abstract here, but there are too many to possibly list. What's everyone's thoughts and favorite discovery? Feel free to discuss.