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direttore Paolo Pagliaro

Researchers from Turin and Lisbon discover a new dinosaur species

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Researchers from Turin and Lisbon discover a new dinosaur species

(4 May 2017) A discovery that brings us back millions of years: a new dinosaur species, the Galeamopus pabsti. The species has been described by palaeontologists of the Department of Earth Sciences of the University of Turin, the Faculty of Science and Technology of Nova University of Lisbon, and the Lourinhã Museum in Portugal. This Jurassic dinosaur was discovered during excavations coordinated by a Swiss research group led by Hans-Jakob "Kirby" Siber and Ben Pabst, Wyoming (USA) in 1995. It is the latest in a series of new discoveries by the two palaeontologists, Emanuel Tschopp (University of Turin) and Octávio Mateus (University of Lisbon) that began in 2012 with the Kaatedocus siberi. The new scientific article was published online in the journal "PeerJ" on Tuesday, May 2nd. Galeamopus pabsti is similar to the Diplodocus, but has more robust limbs and a particularly high neck, and an almost triangular head. It is the second species in the Galeamopus genus, which was identified as distinct from the Diplodocus by the same researchers in 2015. The new species was named after Ben Pabst who found the skeleton and prepared it for installation in the Sauerermuseum Aathal in Switzerland, where it is one of the main attractions (red)


THE SPECIES

The diplodocid sauropods are among the most emblematic of dinosaurs: with their neck and tail so long, they represent the typical shape of a sauropod. Species of diplodocids have been found in Africa, South America, and Europe but the highest diversity exists in the USA: more than 15 species of these giants, including the famous Brontosaurus excelsus, once lived in North America. Researchers are still amazed by the high diversity of these huge animals, and continue their studies to understand how this diversity was supported by the ecosystem they lived in.

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