Category «New discovery»

Arctic pliosaur is new species

Another giant pliosauroid plesiosaur fossil from Arctic Svalbard Islands appears to represent a new species. The specimen was discovered and initial excavations took place in Summer 2007. The treasure trove of marine reptile fossils were first discovered in 2006 by a team from the University of Oslo, Natural History Museum, led by Dr.

Irish plesiosaur bone

A plesiosaur bone has been discovered in Ireland, reported the BBC in October. The single bone represents a large plesiosaur vertebral centrum, but cannot be identified in any detail. It was discovered by Park Ranger Paul Bennet in the Colin River in Colin Glen, on the West edge of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

Elasmosaurid skeleton excavated in Alberta

A giant plesiosaur has been discovered and excavated from the Late Cretaceous Bearpaw Shale of Drumheller, southern Alberta, Canada. According to the press release the fossil remains were found in an ammolite mine by staff from Korite International (‘Ammolite’ is a gemstone, not to be confused with the prehistoric cephalopod ‘ammonite’).

First elasmosaurid plesiosaur from Montana announced

Elasmosaurid plesiosaurs are notorious for ‘losing their heads’. In fossil plesiosaur skeletons the skull is frequently missing, unfortunate because this is such a vital part of the anatomy for understanding the relationships and biology of the animal. This fact makes the discovery of a new elasmosaurid skull, the first ever from the state of Montana, all the more significant.