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New Dinosaur Species from Argentina May Have Specialized in Catching Fish

Life reconstruction of Kank australis. Image credit: Gabriel Díaz Yantén.

Paleontologists in Argentina have identified a previously unknown species of unenlagiid dinosaur that stalked freshwater wetlands during the Late Cretaceous epoch, adding to evidence that some dinosaurs specialized in catching fish.

The post New Dinosaur Species from Argentina May Have Specialized in Catching Fish appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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Fungi Bloomed Twice around End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction

The end-Cretaceous mass extinction was marked by both the Chicxulub asteroid impact and the ongoing eruptions of the Deccan Traps volcanoes.

By studying fungal microfossils in 66-million-year-old rock samples from the Denver Basin in Colorado, Johns Hopkins University microbiologists have confirmed that the dinosaur-killing asteroid impact triggered a worldwide fungal takeover, and uncovered a second, previously unknown ecological crisis just before it.

The post Fungi Bloomed Twice around End-Cretaceous Mass Extinction appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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Cretaceous Bird from China Had Pair of Tail Feathers Twice as Long as Its Body

Plumadraco bankoorum is a new bohaiornithid enantiornithine bird with a pair of exceptionally long rectrices. Image credit: Ville Sinkkonen.

Named Plumadraco bankoorum, the newly-described species of enantiornithine bird lived in what is now northeastern China during the Cretaceous period, roughly 121 million years ago.

The post Cretaceous Bird from China Had Pair of Tail Feathers Twice as Long as Its Body appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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Rare Ostrich-Like Dinosaur Fossil Found on Canadian Island

Life restoration of Quipalong henanesnsis, an ornithomimosaurian dinosaur that lived in what is now China during the Maastrichtian age of the Late Cretaceous, between 72 and 67 million years ago. Image credit: PaleoNeolitic / Sci.News.

Paleontologists in Canada say they have recovered a dinosaur tail vertebra from 75- to 80-million-year-old marine rocks on a small island off the coast of British Columbia, providing the clearest evidence yet that bird-like ornithomimosaurs once roamed the ancient Pacific coastline of North America.

The post Rare Ostrich-Like Dinosaur Fossil Found on Canadian Island appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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83-Million-Year-Old Crocodile Lizard Fossil Unearthed in France

Paleoartistic reconstruction of Acutodon villeveyracensis, the oldest known member of the pan-shinisaur lineage ever found in Europe. Image credit: Olivier Jansen.

Paleontologists have identified a new genus and species of pan-shinisaur lizard from a partial upper jaw discovered in southern France, pushing the presence of its lineage in Europe back by at least 30 million years.

The post 83-Million-Year-Old Crocodile Lizard Fossil Unearthed in France appeared first on Sci.News: Breaking Science News.

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