Nigersaurus: dinosaur called ‘cow of Mesozoic’
The Nigersaurus Skeleton
The Nigersaurus is making scientists think twice about long-necked dinosaurs, because before, they hadn’t considered that those long necks might reach downward rather than up. (Credit: Photo © Gabrielle Lyon, courtesy Project Exploration)
See a larger version of this image.
Scientists have unveiled the “Nigersaurus,” a dinosaur stranger than any seen before. Pieced together from a deposit of dinosaur bones in the Sahara desert, the Nigersaurus is reshaping the way paleontologists look at long-necked dinosaurs.
Earth & Sky spoke with Paul Sereno, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence and discoverer of the 110-million-year-old Nigersaurus. He told us the skull of the Nigersaurus was so odd, it looked like a “Darth Vader” Hoover vacuum. It had a mouth stacked with 50 columns of needle-like teeth. Scientists know the Nigersaurus grazed only on ground-level greenery, because it could barely lift its head above its back. That’s why they’re calling it “the cow of the Mesozoic.”
The Nigersaurus is making scientists think twice about long-necked dinosaurs, because before, they hadn’t considered that those long necks might reach downward rather than up.
We can plan on seeing more new dinosaurs in the future. Sereno said he’s currently working with 30 tons of dinosaur fossils from the same Saharan site.
NEW! Find related content with Sphere
Absolutely fascinating!!
As a child, I loved dinosaurs, and they remain one of my fascinations. I was always interested in the meat-eating tyrant T-Rex (probably typical), but loved to learn about others such as the spike-tailed Stegosaurus and the long-necked Diplodocus. I probably still have a dinosaur bed spread somewhere.
cool