Tuesday, August 30, 2011

New Kid on the Block

Everyone who is interested in dinosaurs knows Eoraptor, a small creature said to be the blueprint for all future theropod dinosaurs. However new findings report that Eoraptors may not have been the grandfather of all theropods after all, rather a similar looking creature that fills the criteria much better has stepped into the spotlight. Its name is Eodromaeus murphi and it lived around the same time as Eoraptor around 230 million years ago and it certainly checks all the must haves for a theropod dinosaur. Judging by its skeletal design it was an fast and active hunter, it had sharp saber-like serrated teeth for slicing through meat, it possessed strong hands with deadly claws at the end of each finger, it had the classical stiffened tail that allowed it to be incredibly agile at high speeds. The research conducted showed that Eodromaus most likely is the grandfather of all therapod dinosaurs while a closer inspection of Eoraptor suggests that it may have evolved into the largest land living creatures ever to walk to earth, the sauropods. All this is still being speculated within the paleontological community but it sure looks like we might be undergoing a few changes within the family trees fairly soon.

Certainly some really interesting pieces of information and a good read so make sure to read the article!

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