Horned ‘hell heron’ fossil found in Sahara upends what we knew about iconic Jurassic Park dinosaur
Yahoo • • science
Key Points:
- A newly discovered Spinosaurus species, Spinosaurus mirabilis, suggests the dinosaur was not fully aquatic but more like a "hell heron" that waded through shallow waters, based on fossils found in the central Sahara region of Niger.
- Unlike previous Spinosaurus fossils found near coastal deposits, this species lived 500-1,000 km inland in forested, riverine habitats about 100-95 million years ago, indicating a diverse ecological adaptation.
- The species featured distinctive scimitar-shaped, keratin-sheathed crests likely used for display, and interdigitating teeth designed to trap slippery river fish, highlighting its specialization as a shallow water predator.
- This discovery represents a new evolutionary phase of
