Scientists Successfully Reconstruct 6.3-Meter Ancient Beast from Fossilized Skeleton Unearthed in Coahuila, Mexico
A study led by Dr. Héctor Rivera-Sylva from the Desert Museum (Mexico) and Dr. Nicholas Longrich from the University of Bath (UK) has identified a new species of ancient beast that roamed North America 72.5 million years ago.
Previously, part of this beast’s skeleton was discovered in rock layers belonging to the Campanian stage in Coahuila, Mexico.
The new beast species has been named Labocania aguillonae.
The Campanian is a late geological stage of the Late Cretaceous period, a time marked by a proliferation of many dinosaur species.
Named Labocania aguillonae, this beast is an ancient predator characterized by features typical of theropod dinosaurs and is a relative of the infamous Tyrannosaurus rex.
According to a publication in the scientific journal Fossil Studies, this beast was approximately 6.3 meters long when alive, notably smaller than the T. rex.
Several anatomical features helped scientists determine that this beast is an unprecedented species. However, some other characteristics indicate it is closely related to several T. rex-like species in the region, such as Labocania anomala, Bistahieversor sealeyi, and Teratophoneus curriei.
Portrait of the new beast species reconstructed by the research team – (Graphic: Karkemish).
This skeleton further illustrates that in what is now Mexico, the Tyrannosaurus family dominated the food chain by evolving into numerous distinct species and branches.
The new discovery strengthens scientists’ belief that there may still be many undiscovered tyrannosaur species in the southern regions of North America.
Additionally, it highlights how rapidly this fearsome dinosaur family evolved during the Late Cretaceous.
About 100 to 89 million years ago, tyrannosaurs were relatively small, non-specialized, and less diverse.
However, during the Campanian stage, starting 83 million years ago, they underwent significant diversification, evolving into much larger and more specialized forms.
Perhaps this group of dinosaurs would have been even more formidable had it not been for the Chicxulub asteroid disaster 66 million years ago, which abruptly ended the age of dinosaurs just as they were entering their golden evolutionary phase.
