Episode 273 is all about Ekrixinatosaurus, the “explosion born” abelisaurid from Argentina.

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In this episode, we discuss:

News:

• A new tyrannosaurid, Thanatotheristes, was found in Canada source
• Utah may soon have a Utahraptor State Park source
• 150,000 illustrations of the natural world have been posted free at the Biodiversity Heritage Library source
• The animatronic Bisti Beast needs a new nickname and you can vote for your favorite source
• The UK Royal Mint has released 3 new coins commemorating Dinosauria, including Megalosaurus, Iguanodon, and Hylaeosaurus source

Also:

Our recent trip to the Tucson Gem Show

The dinosaur of the day: Ekrixinatosaurus

• Abelisaurid theropod that lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now Argentina (Candeleros Formation)
• Estimated to be about 23-26 ft (7-8 m) long (probably a little smaller than Carnotaurus)
• Robust
• Had proportionally short hindlimbs
• Could sustain lots of injuries from fighting
• Had a large head and skull
• Skull was boxy and short and deep
• Had a relatively high skull, similar to Skorpiovenator
• Jaw curved upwards
• Had small holes and spikes in the facial bones, especially the nasal bones
• Probably had a wrinkled, possibly keratinous skin that covered the bones
• Had some short teeth
• Only one species: Ekrixinatosaurus novasi
• Genus name means “explosion born reptile”
• Fossils found due to a gas pipeline being built
• Named because the fossil “was discovered after its rocky tomb was dynamited”
• Species name in honor of Dr. Fernando Novas, for his contributions to studying abelisaurids
• Described in 2004 by Jorge Calvo, David Rubilar-Rogers, and Karen Moreno
• Holotype includes dentaries, left and partial right maxillae, teeth, vertebrae, ribs, ilia, parts of the femur and tibia, and more
• Helped fill in gaps about abelisaur anatomy
• Lived among carcharodontosaurids, which were bigger, but not clear if they had different ecological niches (hunting versus scavenging)
• Other dinosaurs that lived in the same time and place included the titanosaur Andesaurus, other sauropods like Limaysaurus and Nopcsaspondylus, iguanodonts, the carcharodontosaurid Giganotosaurus, the dromaeosaurid Buitreraptor, alvarezsauri Alnashetri, the coelurosaur Bicentenaria
• Other animals included snakes, crocodiles, fish, turtle, frogs, mammals, pterosaurs

Fun Fact: Over 30 countries have made (non-avian) dinosaur coins, but not the United States.

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