A remarkable new dinosaur discovery from South Korea has captured both scientific and public attention. Researchers have named a newly identified species Doolysaurus huhmini, inspired by a famous cartoon character loved across generations.

A Dinosaur Inspired by a Cultural Icon

The name Doolysaurus honours “Dooly”, a mischievous green cartoon dinosaur well known in South Korea. As a result, the name creates a meaningful link between science and popular culture. Lead researcher Jongyun Jung explained that the connection felt natural. The fossil represents a young individual, and the cartoon character is also depicted as a baby dinosaur. Therefore, the name is both scientifically appropriate and culturally significant.

A life reconstruction of a juvenile Doolysaurus huhmini. It is depicted alongside birds and other dinosaurs that lived during the Cretaceous in what is now South Korea. Picture credit: Jun Seong Yi.

Picture credit: Jun Seong Yi

Hidden Doolysaurus huhmini Fossil Revealed by Advanced Scanning

The fossil was discovered on Aphae Island and initially appeared quite limited. Only a few leg bones and vertebrae were visible. However, everything changed once researchers used advanced micro-CT scanning technology. This technique, developed at University of Texas High-Resolution X-ray Computed Tomography Facility, allowed scientists to look inside the rock without damaging it. As a result, previously hidden skull bones and additional skeletal elements were revealed.

Importantly, this marks the first dinosaur fossil from Korea to preserve parts of the skull. Moreover, it is the first dinosaur species based on skeletal remains described from South Korea since Koreanosaurus boseongensis was named and described in 2011.

A Young Dinosaur About the Size of a Turkey

The specimen represents a juvenile dinosaur, estimated to be around two years old when it died. It measured roughly the size of a turkey. However, adults may have grown to twice that size.

Scientists identified growth markers in the femur, which confirmed its young age. In addition, the anatomy suggests that this dinosaur belonged to a group called thescelosaurids. These were small, bipedal herbivorous or omnivorous dinosaurs. Interestingly, researchers think Doolysaurus may have had a coat of fuzzy filaments. Consequently, it might have looked quite different from traditional scaly dinosaur depictions.

Study co-authors Minguk Kim (left) and Hyemin Jo during the initial discovery and excavation of Doolysaurus. Picture credit: Jongyun Jung, The University of Texas at Austin.

Picture credit: Jongyun Jung, The University of Texas at Austin

Evidence of Diet Preserved in the Fossil

The fossil also contained numerous gastroliths. These are small stones swallowed by animals to aid digestion. Their presence provides important clues to the animal’s diet. It suggests that Doolysaurus was likely an omnivore. In other words, it probably ate plants, small animals, and invertebrates. Furthermore, the gastroliths helped researchers realise that more of the skeleton might be preserved inside the rock. This insight ultimately led to the decision to scan the specimen.

The research, published in the journal Fossil Record, highlights the growing importance of CT scanning in palaeontology. This method is especially useful for small and delicate fossils. South Korea is already famous for dinosaur footprints, nests, and eggs. However, body fossils are comparatively rare. Therefore, this discovery is particularly significant.

To read Everything Dinosaur’s blog post about the discovery of fossils of an early ceratopsid dinosaur in South Korea: Koreaceratops – A Ceratopsian with a Broad Tail.

The researchers are optimistic. They believe that more hidden fossils may be waiting to be revealed using similar techniques.

The skeletal anatomy of a juvenile Doolysaurus huhmini. The graphic highlights the fossil bones that were found with the dinosaur. Known fossil bones shown in white in the skeletal drawing. Artwork: Janet Cañamar, adapted from Jung et al 2026.

Artwork: Janet Cañamar, adapted from Jung et al 2026

Looking Ahead to Future Discoveries

The team plans further fieldwork on Aphae Island and nearby locations. They hope to uncover additional specimens and expand our understanding of Korea’s prehistoric ecosystems.

As a result, Doolysaurus may be just the beginning. With continued exploration and new technology, many more discoveries could follow.

The newly discovered dinosaur species is named after the popular South Korean cartoon Dooly the Little Dinosaur. The titular Dooly is on the left. Picture credit: ⓒDoolynara.

Picture credit: ⓒDoolynara

Mike from Everything Dinosaur commented:

“This charmingly named dinosaur combines cutting-edge science with cultural storytelling. It also demonstrates how modern technology is transforming palaeontology. Most importantly, it reminds us that even well-studied regions can still yield exciting new dinosaur discoveries.”

Everything Dinosaur acknowledges the assistance of a media release from the University of Texas at Austin in the compilation of this article.

The scientific paper: “A new dinosaur species from Korea and its implications for early-diverging neornithischian diversity” by Jongyun Jung, Minguk Kim, Hyemin Jo and Julia A. Clarke published in the Fossil Record.

The award-winning Everything Dinosaur website: Dinosaur and Prehistoric Animal Models.

Oviraptorosaurs were not just unusual theropod dinosaurs. They were also closely related to true birds, sharing a common evolutionary heritage within the Maniraptora clade. As a result, many of their behaviours provide important clues about how modern avian reproduction evolved. A fascinating new study on oviraptorosaurian incubation has been published in the journal “Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution”.  The research outlines how these extremely bird-like theropods brooded their eggs. Moreover, it challenges long-held assumptions about how efficiently they incubated their clutches.

An Oviraptor and its nest.  Palaeontologists study oviraptorosaurian dinosaurs to better understand the evolutionary roots of bird-specific reproductive characteristics. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Previous studies have highlighted this close avian relationship. In particular, palaeontologists have noted that some bird-specific reproductive traits may have deeper evolutionary roots. One such trait is thermoregulatory contact incubation (TCI). This behaviour, seen in modern birds, involves direct body contact between the adult and the eggs to regulate temperature.

The study focused on the Chinese oviraptorosaurian Heyuannia huangi.

To read an earlier study that examined the colouration of oviraptorosaurian eggs: Dinosaurs May Have Laid Coloured Eggs.

Thermoregulatory Contact Incubation (TCI)

Fossil evidence strongly supports this connection. Several oviraptorid specimens have been discovered preserved on top of their nests. Strikingly, these individuals adopt postures that closely resemble avian brooding behaviour. Their forelimbs are spread over the clutch, much like a bird sheltering its eggs.  Therefore, it has been proposed that oviraptorosaurs may have undertaken a form of contact incubation similar to that of modern birds. However, as this new study demonstrates, the reality was likely more complex.

Scale drawing of the oviraptorosaurian Oviraptor philoceratops. Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur.

Picture credit: Everything Dinosaur

Specifically, the study explores how nest structure, egg arrangement, and body contact influenced embryo development. As a result, it paints a more complex picture of dinosaur reproduction than previously thought. For example, this new research reveals an important limitation. The scientists found that adult oviraptorosaurs likely could not directly warm all their eggs. Their nests typically consisted of multiple concentric rings of eggs. While the adult could cover the outer ring, the inner eggs remained partially insulated from body heat. Consequently, incubation efficiency was estimated at only around 65%, significantly lower than that seen in most modern birds.

Because of this limitation, the researchers propose a hybrid incubation strategy. In other words, oviraptorosaurs likely relied on both body heat and environmental warmth.

For example, sunlight may have warmed exposed portions of the nest. At the same time, partially buried eggs could retain heat from the surrounding sediment. Therefore, incubation was not solely dependent on the parent’s body temperature.

A Transitional Evolutionary Strategy

This mixed approach resembles strategies seen in some modern reptiles and ground-nesting birds. However, it also suggests a unique evolutionary stage between reptilian and fully avian reproduction. One key implication of this nesting strategy involves temperature variation within the clutch. Because inner and outer eggs received different amounts of heat, they likely developed at different rates. As a result, asynchronous hatching may have occurred. This means some chicks hatched earlier than others within the same nest.

In modern ecosystems, asynchronous hatching can influence survival. For instance, earlier hatchlings may gain a size advantage. However, in oviraptorosaurs, the exact biological impact remains uncertain.

Nevertheless, this study highlights how even subtle differences in nest structure could shape reproductive success.

Oviraptorosaurian Incubation and the Implications for Sex Determination

An especially intriguing section of the paper (4.3.5) examines the oviraptorid sex determination system. In modern birds, sex is determined genetically using Z and W chromosomes. Temperature does not influence whether an embryo becomes male or female. By contrast, many reptiles exhibit temperature-dependent sex determination (TSD), where incubation temperature plays a crucial role.

So, how does oviraptorosaurian incubation influence sex? The research team discusses the possibility that oviraptorids retained a genetic sex determination system, similar to birds. However, the authors also consider whether temperature variation within nests could still have influenced development in subtle ways. Importantly, there is no direct evidence that oviraptorosaurs used TSD like crocodilians or turtles. That said, the uneven incubation conditions identified in this study raise interesting questions.

For example, if temperature gradients existed across the nest, could they have affected growth rates, hatch timing, or even sex ratios? At present, this remains speculative.

Therefore, the safest conclusion is that oviraptorosaurs were likely genetically sex-determined, but their complex nesting environments may still have had biological consequences.

Combining Avian and Reptilian Traits When it Comes to Oviraptorosaurian Incubation

The researchers postulate that oviraptorosaurians occupied an evolutionary middle ground. They displayed clear bird-like behaviours, such as brooding posture and nest care. Yet, their incubation system was not as efficient as that of modern birds.

Instead, they appear to have combined avian and reptilian traits. On the one hand, they guarded and brooded their nests. On the other, they relied partly on environmental heat. Consequently, oviraptorosaurs provide a valuable window into the evolution of reproductive strategies among theropod dinosaurs.

Conclusions

This new study adds an important layer of detail to our understanding of dinosaur reproduction. It shows that brooding behaviour alone does not guarantee efficient incubation. More importantly, it highlights how nest design, temperature variation, and developmental biology all interact. Together, these factors shaped the survival of the next generation.

As more research emerges, we can expect even deeper insights into how these remarkable dinosaurs lived and reproduced.

The scientific paper: “Heat transfer in a realistic clutch reveals a lower efficiency in incubation of oviraptorid dinosaurs than of modern birds” by Chun-Yu Su, Jun-Yang Liao, Hsiao-Jou Wu, Kuan-Yu Chou, Ching Chen, Ming-Tsang Lee and Tzu-Ruei Yang published in Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.

The multi-award-winning Everything Dinosaur website: Oviraptorosaurian and Other Dinosaur Models.