A new Spinosaurus species has been unearthed from the Saharan desert, and its skull bears a magnificent crest never seen before on this kind of dinosaur.
Paleontologists have named it Spinosaurus mirabilis, meaning 'wonderful spine lizard'. We heartily agree.
The discovery reveals more than just the dinosaur's beauty, however. Spinosaurus have mostly been found in coastal deposits, while this new specimen hails from deep inland in Niger, hundreds of kilometers from any ocean.
Even the paleontology team, led by Paul Sereno of the University of Chicago, was caught off guard.
"This find was so sudden and amazing, it was really emotional for our team," Sereno says.
"I'll forever cherish the moment in camp when we crowded around a laptop to look at the new species for the first time… One member of our team generated 3D digital models of the bones we found to assemble the skull – on solar power in the middle of the Sahara. That's when the significance of the discovery really registered."
With its spiky, interlocking teeth reminiscent of modern crocodiles, and its proximity to long-necked dinosaurs buried in nearby river sediments, Sereno and team think this Spinosaurus might have led a semi-aquatic lifestyle amidst a forested habitat.
"I envision this dinosaur as a kind of 'hell heron' that had no problem wading on its sturdy legs into two meters of water but probably spent most of its time stalking shallower traps for the many large fish of the day," Sereno says.
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The scimitar-shaped crest sure is handsome, but exactly what purpose it served remains a mystery. The team suspect it was once sheathed in keratin – perhaps brightly colored, like a toucan's bill – to create a kind of visual display.
The research was published in Science.