A newly discovered dinosaur, Pendraig milnerae, lived approximately 200 million years ago and is related to the T-rex. It may have been a top predator in its ecosystem, despite its relatively small size.
The fossil remains of this small yet fearsome creature were found in a quarry in southern Wales. This dinosaur is the oldest known theropod dinosaur discovered to date, a group that includes T-rex and modern birds, found in England.
Fossil fragments of Pendraig milnerae found in a quarry in southern Wales.
The research team named the newly discovered dinosaur Pendraig milnerae—where Pendraig means “chief dragon” in Welsh, and milnerae honors the late Angela Milner, a key member of the research team at the Dinosaur Gallery of the Natural History Museum in London, who was a paleontologist at the museum for over 30 years.
The fossil fragments of Pendraig milnerae were discovered in a quarry in southern Wales during the 1950s but were stored away until Milner found them.
The research team estimates that this dinosaur lived between 200 and 215 million years ago during the Triassic period. It may have had a body size similar to that of a modern chicken, but with a tail extending about one meter long.
Stephan Spiekman, a researcher at the Natural History Museum in London, stated: “Pendraig milnerae lived near the early stages of the evolution of carnivorous dinosaurs. From the bones, we can see that it was a carnivore. However, in the early stages of evolution, they were quite small, unlike the well-known large carnivorous dinosaurs like T-rex, which appeared much later.”
The discovery of this new species may provide evidence of a potential “island effect” in the area. “The area where these specimens were found was likely an island during the time Pendraig milnerae lived. Species that live on islands tend to be smaller than their mainland counterparts; this is known as the island effect,” Spiekman explained.
However, since the specimen of Pendraig found was not fully mature, no conclusions can be drawn about this. “We need more evidence from additional species to investigate the possibility of the island effect in this area during that time, but if we can prove it, this would be the first time this evolutionary phenomenon has been documented,” Spiekman added.
Richard Butler, a co-author of the paper on the new dinosaur and a professor of paleontology at the University of Birmingham, remarked: “Discoveries of dinosaurs are quite rare in Wales, and this is only the third known dinosaur species from this country. It is exciting to learn more about the dinosaurs that lived in the UK during the Triassic period, right at the dawn of dinosaur evolution.”
The fossils of Pendraig milnerae were initially found in the 1950s by paleontologists Pamela Robinson and Kenneth Kermack, but the species was not named at that time.
