Subscribe free to our newsletters via your




EARLY EARTH
Big dinosaur discoveries in tiny toothy packages
by Staff Writers
Edmonton, Canada (SPX) Aug 13, 2015


This is an artist's rendering of small theropod from the South Pyrenees. Image courtesy Sydney Mohr (artist), University of Alberta. For a larger version of this image please go here.

Researchers have examined one of the smallest parts of the fossil record--theropod teeth--to shed light on the evolution of dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous. Findings published in the prestigious journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica have effectively quadrupled the dinosaur diversity in the area of study, eight localities from Trevino County, Huesca and Lerida--including the exceptional site of Lano. There were previously only two known species in the area.

The study of 142 isolated teeth from the Campanian-Maastrichtian of the South Pyrenean Basin suggests six additional species of toothed theropods (five small, one large) were present in the region.

"Studying these small parts helps us reconstruct the ancient world where dinosaurs lived and to understand how their extinction happened," says lead author Angelica Torices, post-doctoral fellow in biological sciences at the University of Alberta.

"Teeth are especially important in the study of Upper Cretaceous creatures in Spain and the rest of Europe because we don't have complete skeletons of theropods from that time in those locations. We have to rely on these small elements to reconstruct the evolution of these dinosaurs, particularly the theropods."

Carnivorous dinosaurs replaced their teeth continuously, with just one dinosaur producing a huge number of these dental pieces and an endless number of clues for understanding these mysterious creatures. This study demonstrates the value of isolated teeth in reconstructing the composition of dinosaur paleofaunas when other, more complete material is not present, allowing interpretation of the evolution of diversity through time.

The findings provide huge strides in understanding not only the diversity of carnivorous dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous in Europe, but also how the diversity of large animals responds to climatic changes.

"It completely changes the vision of the ecosystem," says Torices.

"Moreover, we now understand that these dinosaurs disappeared very quickly in geological time, probably in a catastrophic event. Climatic models show that we may reach Cretaceous temperatures within the next century, and the only way we can study biodiversity under such conditions is through the fossil record."


Thanks for being here;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once


credit card or paypal
SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5 Billed Monthly


paypal only


.


Related Links
University of Alberta
Explore The Early Earth at TerraDaily.com






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle




Memory Foam Mattress Review
Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News





EARLY EARTH
Piecing together the Pangea puzzle
Boulder CO (SPX) Aug 01, 2015
Two hundred and fifty million years ago, all the major continents were joined together, forming a continent called Pangea (which means "all land" in Greek). The plate thickness of continents can now be measured using seismology, and it is surprisingly variable, from about 90 km beneath places like California or Western Europe, to more than 200 km beneath the older interiors of the U.S., Eastern ... read more


EARLY EARTH
Honeywell search and rescue tech commissioned for defense customer

Funds shortage may end UN chopper aid to quake-hit Nepal

Myanmar asks for international aid as flood misery spreads

Chinese consortium to salvage S. Korea ferry

EARLY EARTH
Antenova announces embedded GNSS antenna for accurate positioning

Surfing for science

Russia develops national high-end navigation system

ISRO is hoping its 'BIG' offering would gain popularity in the market

EARLY EARTH
World population to top 11 billion by end of the century

Wild bonobos show similarities to development of human speech

Body size increase did not play a role in the origins of Homo genus

Take a trip through the brain

EARLY EARTH
Biology, not just physics, controls release of scent compounds from plants

New biosensors for managing microbial 'workers'

Almost 80 species scavenge hunting remains worldwide

Scientists solve mystery behind earthworm digestion

EARLY EARTH
Ebola: The epidemic's timeline

It takes a village to ward off dangerous infections

Fighting mosquito resistance to insecticides

Mowing dry detention basins makes mosquito problems worse, team finds

EARLY EARTH
Prosecutors to be punished if China graft suspects kill selves

China's Ai Weiwei says wants to teach art in Berlin

Artist Ai Weiwei flies to Germany as Britain slammed over visa

China steps up campaign to remove church crosses

EARLY EARTH
All bets are off inside Laos' jungle sin city

Football: FIFA sets election date as Blatter finally rules himself out

Piracy, other maritime crimes rise in Southeast Asia

Mexico army ordered soldiers to kill criminals: NGO

EARLY EARTH
Chinese dragon losing its shine for foreign firms

China devalues yuan nearly 2% for economic boost

EU says Greek debt talks reach technical, not political, agreement

Mobile makeover for Britain's scandal-hit banks




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement All images and articles appearing on Space Media Network have been edited or digitally altered in some way. Any requests to remove copyright material will be acted upon in a timely and appropriate manner. Any attempt to extort money from Space Media Network will be ignored and reported to Australian Law Enforcement Agencies as a potential case of financial fraud involving the use of a telephonic carriage device or postal service.