A brand-new types of non-avian dinosaur with a structured body comparable to those of contemporary diving birds, such as penguins and auks, is explained in a research study released in Communications Biology The findings represent the very first case of a non-avian theropod– a kind of meat-eating dinosaur that strolled on 2 legs– to have a structured body.
Yuong-Nam Lee and associates recognized the brand-new types by analyzing the fossilized remains of a specimen from the Omnogovi Province, Mongolia. They have actually called the types Natovenator polydontus, suggesting “swimming hunter with numerous teeth.” The specimen is a mainly total skeleton and includes the skull, spine, one forelimb, and the remains of 2 hindlimbs.
The authors report numerous adjustments that recommend that Natovenator might have been a semiaquatic diving predator, consisting of a structured body comparable to those of contemporary diving birds– with ribs that point towards its tail– and a long neck comparable to contemporary water birds such as geese. These adaptions might have lowered the drag that Natovenator would have undergone when swimming and assisted it to capture victim.
The authors likewise hypothesize that the uncommonly high variety of teeth that Natovenator had in relation to the size of its jaw might suggest that it consumed a fish or insect-based diet plan, nevertheless more proof– such as the fossilized remains of its stomach contents