#1: EMBARGOED PRESS RELEASE
STRICTLY UNDER EMBARGO UNTIL12:00PM NOON ET (US) ONTHURSDAY,NOVEMBER10, 2016
Region(s) of Interest:Brazil
Institution(s):Universidadede Sao Paulo
Dinosaurs'risewas 'moregradual,' new fossil evidence suggests
Researchers have discovered two small dinosaurs together with alagerpetid, a group of animals that are recognized as precursors of dinosaurs. The discovery made in Brazil and reported inCurrent Biologyon November 10 represents the first time that a dinosaur and a dinosaur precursor have ever been found together.
The newlagerpetid(Ixalerpeton) and saurischian dinosaur (Buriolestes) were unearthed from the ~230-million-year-oldCarnianSanta Maria Formation--one of the oldest known rock units including dinosaur fossils anywhere in the world.
"We now know for sure that dinosaurs and dinosaur precursors lived alongside one another and that theriseof dinosaurs wasmoregradual, not a fast overtaking of other animals of the time," says Max Langer of Brazil'sUniversidadede São Paulo.
The discovery clearly shows that these animals were contemporaries of each other during the earliest stages of dinosaurs' evolution. The newlagerpetidspecimen also preserves the first skull, scapular, and forelimb elements, plus associated vertebrae, known for the group, the researchers report. Tooth evidence also shows that the first dinosaurs most likely fed on "all kinds of small animals, but most probably notplants," Langer says.
Those details help to reveal how dinosaurs acquired some of their characteristic anatomical traits. Their analysis also suggests thatBuriolestesis one of the oldest knownSauropodomorpha, the group of long-necked dinosaurs that includes sauropods.
The two new animals have already helped to fill important gaps in the evolution of the key anatomical features of dinosaurs. But Langer and his colleagues aren't done with them yet. They are using CT scans to characterize and describe the animals' anatomy in even greater detail. They also hope to get an evenmorepreciseradioisotopicdate on the oldest dinosaur-bearing rocks, and the search formoreTriassic fossils continues.
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This study was supported by FAPESP, FAPERJ, andCNPq.
Current Biology,Cabreiraet al.: "A Unique Late TriassicDinosauromorphAssemblage Reveals Dinosaur Ancestral Anatomy and Diet" DOI:
Related Files:
This Dropbox contains a PDF of the paper proof,the supplemental info, two high-res reconstructions and two fossil images with caption/credit info:
Author Contact:
Max Cardoso Langer
DepartamentodeBiologia, FFCLRP
Universidadede Sao Paulo (USP)
Phone:+55 16 3315 3844
Cell:+55 16 99275-0088
Media Contact:
RosemeireTalamone
Universidadede Sao Paulo (USP)