New Theropod Dinosaur Revealed

A team of Polish palaeontologists have excavated the partial remains of a new type of carnivorous dinosaur, a Polish fossil that may turn out to be an ancient ancestor of the most famous dinosaur of all – Tyrannosaurus rex.

Polish Fossil

The palaeontologists were called in when construction workers in a brickyard in Lisowice, a small village in Legnica county 200 kilometres west of Warsaw, uncovered the bones of this animal and other ancient creatures dating back to the Early Jurassic.

The dinosaur has been nicknamed “Dragon” whilst further research and study is undertaken to try to classify this animal, a formal name and description will be published once this work has been completed.  Giving prehistoric animal pet names whilst they are being excavated and prepared is quite a common practice, all the fossils will have been recorded and given a specific registration code to assist with identification and study but amongst palaeontologists it is an accepted practice to give their finds nicknames.

The scientists estimate that this bipedal, meat-eater was approximately 5 metres long and it would have been one of the top predators around in this area 200 million years ago (Hettangian (Jurassic) to Rhaetian (Triassic) faunal stages).

Little is known about the evolution of theropod dinosaurs and remains from the Jurassic/Triassic border are exceptionally rare.  It is hoped that this new discovery will reveal more information about the evolution and development of this particular group of dinosaurs.

Commenting on the discovery, Sulej said:

“This is a completely new type of dinosaur that was so far unknown.  Nobody even expected that members of this group lived in that time, so this gives us new knowledge about the whole evolution of the T. rex group”.

The Study is On-going

The scientists will continue examining the bones and fully document the discovery and the other items found in association with this animal.  Their discoveries will be put on temporary display in Lisowice village before being added to the Polish Academy of Science’s collection.  The fossils of a large, Triassic dicynodont were also found, the Polish team have speculated that these herbivorous, mammal-like reptiles were the prey of the newly discovered dinosaur.  By the Late Triassic the dicynodonts were becoming increasingly rare, the group had not recovered from the mass extinction that ended the Permian period.

The jaw is relatively thin, but from the evidence presented in the notes that Everything Dinosaur team members have read, it is not possible to determine whether it is representative of Ceratosauria such as Dilophosaurus, Coelophysoidea such as Liliensternus or a member of the Tetanurae (stiff tails).  When the formal papers are published this issue will be cleared up.

During the Early Jurassic the fossil record shows that there was a sudden expansion of different types of meat-eating dinosaur.  This may be due to the rapid evolution and diversification of the plant-eating dinosaurs, the more types of prey there are, the more kinds of predator evolved to hunt them.  During this period the super-continent of Pangaea begun to break up, isolating groups of animals and providing new environments for the fauna and flora to exploit.

Note

This animal was later named Smok wawelski.  This Polish carnivore is classified as an archosaur, but its exact taxonomic placement remains ambiguous.

The picture (above) shows a modern interpretation of this Polish archosaur (S. wawelski). CollectA created a model of this animal based on traits that indicate an affinity to the Pseudosuchia – the crocodile lineage of archosaurs.

To view the CollectA Deluxe range: CollectA Deluxe Prehistoric Life Models.