Sophisticated dating of zircon crystals found in volcanic ash has demonstrated that the famous Bromacker fossil site is four million years older than previously thought. The Bromacker fossil site is located in the Thuringian Forest near the village of Tambach-Dietharz (Germany).  The study, published in the journal “Gondwana Research” indicates that the fossil-bearing rocks are 294 million years old.  These rocks record a terrestrial ecosystem from the Early Permian (Asselian faunal stage).

The volcanic ash tuff layer which contained the zircon crystals is only a few millimetres thick.  It was discovered during field work in 2024.

One of the co-authors of the paper, Sophie König (Friedenstein Foundation) commented:

“When we uncovered the dark, reddish-purple ash layer, the difference to the surrounding rock was immediately apparent, and we were very hopeful that we had finally found material that could be dated. The fact that the rock sample actually contained usable zircons still came as a surprise to me. We are delighted to have added an important scientific building block to the highly successful Bromacker project.”

A photograph of zircon crystals. Picture credit: Jakob Stubenrauch.

Picture credit: Jakob Stubenrauch

Dating the Bromacker Fossil Site

Zircon crystals are durable and inert. They naturally trap radioactive uranium in their crystal lattice but exclude lead. As uranium naturally decays into lead at a known constant rate, measuring the ratio of uranium to lead found in a crystal is an accurate method of calculating the absolute age of the crystal. This permits volcanic deposits that contain zircon crystals to be accurately dated. In turn, this provides geologists with a benchmark against which associated sediments can be dated.  The ratio of U to Pb acts as an internal clock.

In order to date the age of the ash layer zircon crystals were extracted from rock samples and analysed radiometrically at the TU Bergakademie Freiberg.  The scientists could then determine the age of the famous Bromacker fossil site with a high degree of precision.

The results of the dating study have significant implications for research. They will help to date ecosystems and fossils from other fossil deposits of similar age that, like Bromacker, formed on the supercontinent Pangaea. The age of these fossils can now be better determined thanks to the correlation with the precisely dated Bromacker fossils.

Providing Information About Permian Ecosystems

Lead author of the research, Dr Lorenzo Marchetti (Museum für Naturkunde Berlin) explained:

“This extraordinary fossil deposit, which provides so much information about Permian ecosystems, needed precise dating in order to become a global reference for biostratigraphic, palaeoclimatic and evolutionary biology studies. Careful exploration of the Bromacker site led to this unexpected but urgently needed discovery of a layer of ash containing well-preserved zircon crystals.”

The new age of 294 mya has implications for the scientific understanding of early ecosystems and terrestrial vertebrates.  For example, the food pyramid as we know it today developed earlier than previously thought. The time span between the first appearance of herbivores and the development of modern food webs was shorter, proving that the evolution of Bromacker organisms proceeded more rapidly than previously thought. Thanks to the new age dating, it is now clear that all these evolutionary innovations and the transition to a more seasonal climate occurred much earlier than the scientific community had previously assumed.

Remarkable fossil discoveries at the famous Bromacker fossil site: Spectacular Fossil Finds for the Bromacker Project Team.

Everything Dinosaur acknowledges the assistance of a media release from the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin in the compilation of this article.

The scientific paper: “First high-precision radioisotopic age from the Permian Bromacker lagerstätte (Tambach Formation, Germany) and implications for biochronology and biota evolution” by Lorenzo Marchetti, Jakob Stubenrauch, Alexandra Käßner, Marion Tichomirowa, Sophie König, Anna Pint and Thomas Voigt published in Gondwana Research.

The award-winning Everything Dinosaur website: Models of Prehistoric Animals.

An international team of palaeontologists has described a new species of early land vertebrate from Brazil. The species is named Tanyka amnicola. Researchers identified this unusual animal from fossils discovered in north-eastern Brazil. Their findings appear as an open access paper in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B. Importantly, the fossils reveal an amphibian with a very unusual jaw. The unique jaw morphology suggests adaptations to either specialised processing of small invertebrates or consumption of plants. This demonstrates that some stem tetrapods were exploring niches in ecosystems in the Southern Hemisphere during the Permian.

Fossils from the Pedra de Fogo Formation

The fossils come from the Pedra de Fogo Formation. This formation lies within the Parnaíba Basin of Brazil. Scientists recovered nine isolated lower jaws, each about fifteen centimetres long. Although researchers have not yet found other bones, these jaws reveal important clues. Professor Jörg Fröbisch from the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin played a key role in this study.

Professor Fröbisch commented that the discovery followed many years of work in the region. In fact, the first jaw was discovered during one of the earliest expeditions. For more than fifteen years, researchers have studied the fossils of the Parnaíba Basin. The project involves scientists from Brazil, Argentina, South Africa, the USA, the UK (London Natural History Museum) and Germany.

Life reconstruction of Tanyka amnicola grazing on some plants. Picture credit: Vitor Silva.

Picture credit: Vitor Silva

Tanyka amnicola An Ancient “Living Fossil”

Interestingly, Tanyka amnicola belonged to a very old lineage. As a result, the animal could already be considered a “living fossil” in its own time.

Professor Fröbisch explained:

“What is particularly exciting is that even during its lifetime around 275 million years ago, it could have been described as a living fossil, as it belongs to an archaic group that actually lived 30-50 million years earlier.”

During this period in Earth’s history Brazil was part of a supercontinent called Gondwana. This enormous landmass included South America, Africa, Antarctica and Australia.

A Remarkably Twisted Jaw

The lower jaw of Tanyka amnicola shows a very unusual structure. Lead author Jason Pardo explained that the twisted jaw initially puzzled the researchers. However, every fossil jaw shows the same shape. Therefore, the feature represents normal anatomy rather than damage or taphonomy.

The teeth point sideways rather than straight upwards. Meanwhile, the inner surface of the jaw tilts towards the palate. Furthermore, the jaw surface carries many small teeth. These teeth may have formed a rough grinding surface. When the mouth closed, the teeth probably rubbed against each other. Consequently, the animal could crush or shred food. Hence, the theory that this tetrapod may have been herbivorous, or at least plants made up a proportion of its diet.

Professor Juan Cisneros from the Federal University of Piauí, a co-author of the study believes the animal ate plants at least part of the time.

He stated:

“Based on the structure of its teeth, we assume that Tanyka ate plants at least some of the time. This is surprising, as most of its relatives were carnivores.”

Therefore, Tanyka amnicola may represent an early experiment in herbivory among early tetrapods.

A Window into Early Permian Ecosystems

Fossils from the early Permian are relatively rare. Consequently, every discovery provides valuable information. The Pedra de Fogo Formation offers one of the few windows into Gondwana’s ecosystems at that time.

Co-author Dr Kenneth Angielczyk commented:

“The Pedra de Fogo Formation offers one of the few windows into the animal world of Gondwana during the early Permian period. Tanyka shows us which animals lived there and what ecological roles they played.”

Fossils from this Formation also help scientists understand how early tetrapods interacted.

Tanyka amnicola probably lived close to rivers and lakes. The species name reflects its habitat, the word “amnicola” translates as “river dweller”.  The genus name is derived from the local Guaraní language, it translates as “jaw”.

Researchers estimate that Tanyka amnicola may have reached around one metre in length.

More Discoveries May Follow

At present, scientists only know the animal from jawbones. However, future discoveries could change that. For example, researchers hope to find skulls or articulated skeletons. Such fossils would help reconstruct the entire animal.

Nevertheless, even these isolated jaws provide remarkable insight.

For now, Tanyka amnicola offers a fascinating glimpse into early tetrapod evolution. Moreover, it highlights the importance of the Pedra de Fogo Formation in revealing an ancient ecosystem from Gondwana.

Everything Dinosaur acknowledges the assistance of the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin in the compilation of this article.

The scientific paper: “An aberrant stem tetrapod from the early Permian of Brazil” by Jason D. Pardo, Claudia A. Marsicano, Roger Smith, Juan Carlos Cisneros, Kenneth D. Angielczyk, Jörg Fröbisch, Christian F. Kammerer and Martha Richter published in the Royal Society Proceedings B.

The award-winning Everything Dinosaur website: Prehistoric Animal Figures.

A groundbreaking scientific paper published in January (2026), has confirmed the presence of ceratopsian dinosaurs in Late Cretaceous Europe. The research focuses on the Hungarian dinosaur Ajkaceratops kozmai. The findings challenge long-standing ideas about Europe’s prehistoric ecosystems.

For decades, palaeontologists believed that horned dinosaurs were missing from Europe. Ceratopsians were widespread across Asia and North America during the Late Cretaceous. Famous species include Triceratops and Pachyrhinosaurus. Yet convincing fossils confirming their presence in Europe remained elusive.

The new research suggests these dinosaurs were hiding in plain sight.

The Enigmatic and Highly Significant Ajkaceratops kozmai

Ajkaceratops was first described from fragmentary fossils discovered in Hungary. These remains came from the Csehbánya Formation, rocks dating to approximately eighty-four million years ago (Santonian faunal stage of the Late Cretaceous). The fossils hinted at a small horned dinosaur, about the size of a labrador dog.

However, some researchers questioned this interpretation. The fossils were incomplete and difficult to interpret.

The new study, with corresponding author Professor Susannah Maidment (London Natural History Museum), provides crucial evidence. The research team described a new specimen, catalogue number MTM 2025.1.1. This fossil includes a much more complete skull. Detailed analysis of this fossil confirms that Ajkaceratops kozmai is indeed a true ceratopsian dinosaur.

Professor Maidment explained in a media release that the study indicates that far from being absent from Europe, ceratopsians may have been relatively common.

A scale drawing of the Late Cretaceous European ceratopsian Ajkaceratops (A. kozmai). Picture credit: Generated using AI/Canva with additional annotation by Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Generated using AI/Canva with additional annotation by Everything Dinosaur

Uncovering Another Surprising Discovery About Rhabdodontids

The research uncovered an even more surprising discovery. Several dinosaurs previously classified as rhabdodontids may actually be ceratopsians. Rhabdodontids were thought to be iguanodontians. In addition, these herbivorous dinosaurs were regarded as unique to Europe. However, the new analysis suggests that some fossils attributed to rhabdodontids belong to horned dinosaurs instead. For example, a dinosaur named as Mochlodon vorosi is now considered a junior synonym of Ajkaceratops.

Another dramatic revision involves the Romanian dinosaur Zalmoxes shqiperorum. This species has now been reassigned to a new ceratopsian genus named Ferenceratops (Maidment et al, 2026). The genus honours the pioneering Austro-Hungarian palaeontologist and polymath Baron Franz Nopcsa.

A Hidden Diversity of European Ceratopsians

These revisions suggest that horned dinosaurs may have been far more common in Europe than previously believed. Many fossils may have been misidentified because of incomplete material. The confusion stems partly from evolutionary history. Ceratopsians and iguanodontians share a common ancestor. They are both classified as ornithischian dinosaurs.  These two groups later evolved similar features. For instance, both developed complex chewing mechanisms and large body sizes. Some species also adopted quadrupedal locomotion. These similarities make fragmentary fossils difficult to identify.

An example of a typical rhabdodontid dinosaur. Life restoration of newly described rhabdodontid dinosaur Obelignathus septimanicus in the Late Cretaceous environment recorded in the ‘Grès à Reptiles’ Formation in southern France. A pair of dromaeosaurid dinosaurs can be seen lurking in the background. Picture credit: Edyta Felcyn-Kowalska.

Picture credit: Edyta Felcyn-Kowalska

Reassessing the Biota of Late Cretaceous Europe

During the Late Cretaceous, Europe formed a chain of islands scattered across the Tethys Sea. Scientists believed this isolation produced unique dinosaur faunas. Such as the fauna associated with the Hateg Basin. However, the presence of ceratopsians suggests European ecosystems may have been more similar to the fauna found elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere.

The discovery also fills an important gap in ceratopsian evolution. Early horned dinosaurs originated in Asia and later spread to North America. Europe may have served as an important stepping stone during these dispersals. Furthermore, the study highlights the importance of museum collections. Fossils stored for decades can reveal new secrets when re-examined with modern techniques.

As more discoveries emerge, palaeontologists may uncover an unexpected diversity of European horned dinosaurs. It seems that Europe’s “missing” ceratopsians were there all along hiding in plain sight.

The scientific paper: “A hidden diversity of ceratopsian dinosaurs in Late Cretaceous Europe” by Susannah C. R. Maidment, Richard J. Butler, Stephen L. Brusatte, Luke E. Meade, Felix J. Augustin, Zoltán Csiki-Sava and Attila Ősi published in Nature.

For ceratopsian figures and other dinosaur models: Dinosaur Figures.