TAIPEI—Chinese paleontologists announced that they have unearthed the world’s oldest Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil in Chaoyang City of China’s northeast Liaoning Province.
The fossilized bones were originally discovered at a local quarry in March, according to the County Bureau of Land and Resources. Among the fossils, the paleontologists identified a third of a skull, two broken ilia, and two vertebrae.
The Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS) identified the remains as that of Raptorex, a precursor of Tyrannosaurus. Based on its skull size, scientists believe the creature would have been about 10 feet long, as opposed to the usual 40-foot length of a T. Rex. CAGS also noted that the Raptorex iliac bones match the characteristic of T. Rex, whose iliac bones were attached to the spine by a few vertebrae.
The traditionally recognized T. Rex lived during the early Cretaceous Period, at least 120 million years ago. However, the newly excavated fossils date 60 million years earlier than all other Tyrannosaurs found in North America and Inner Mongolia, according to Ji Qiang, a scientist at CAGS.
Archaeologists have discovered hundreds of fossils at Chaoyang City since the 1980s, including tyrannosaurs, birds, and plants from the Cretaceous Period of the Mesozoic Era, according to China’s state-run media. Scientists believe that the new findings will provide significant insight into the origins and migration of the Tyrannosaurs.
Read the Original Chinese article.
The fossilized bones were originally discovered at a local quarry in March, according to the County Bureau of Land and Resources. Among the fossils, the paleontologists identified a third of a skull, two broken ilia, and two vertebrae.
The Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS) identified the remains as that of Raptorex, a precursor of Tyrannosaurus. Based on its skull size, scientists believe the creature would have been about 10 feet long, as opposed to the usual 40-foot length of a T. Rex. CAGS also noted that the Raptorex iliac bones match the characteristic of T. Rex, whose iliac bones were attached to the spine by a few vertebrae.
The traditionally recognized T. Rex lived during the early Cretaceous Period, at least 120 million years ago. However, the newly excavated fossils date 60 million years earlier than all other Tyrannosaurs found in North America and Inner Mongolia, according to Ji Qiang, a scientist at CAGS.
Archaeologists have discovered hundreds of fossils at Chaoyang City since the 1980s, including tyrannosaurs, birds, and plants from the Cretaceous Period of the Mesozoic Era, according to China’s state-run media. Scientists believe that the new findings will provide significant insight into the origins and migration of the Tyrannosaurs.
Read the Original Chinese article.
