Welcome! Join our community of dinosaur enthusiasts and support our show on Patreon.

REDISCOVER YOUR LOVE OF DINOSAURS.

Apple Podcasts     Spotify   Google Podcasts   Amazon Music listen to i know dino: the big dinosaur podcast on goodpods RSS

 

The Big Dinosaur Podcast

The Big Dinosaur Podcast

A site about dinosaurs

This Week in Dinosaur News: A new ankylosaur from Utah named Akainacephalus for its spikey face, and more

Here’s the new ankylosaur Akainacephalus! Retrieved from https://peerj.com/articles/5016/

 

Here’s what came out this week in dinosaur news:

  • The ankylosaur Akainacephalus johnsoni was found in Utah with a gryposaur, a turtle, and a crocodile source
  • Dinosaur National Monument has a new paleontologist source
  • A geology instructor donated a large collection of fossils and specimens to the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut source
  • A 30 foot inflatable dinosaur named Dino-Mite was briefly stolen from a fireworks store source
  • The Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville, Virginia is having a two-day Dino Festival source
  • York Maze in the UK has opened a 15 acre maze of a T. rex and Triceratops to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Jurassic Park source
  • BBC4 aired the three part series titled Jurassic Coast Revealed source
  • A 1/2 oz pure silver colored Canadian dinosaur coin featuring Edmontonia was released source

Check out these stories, our fun fact, and dinosaur of the day Koreaceratops in episode 191 of the I Know Dino Podcast!

I Know Dino Podcast Show Notes: Koreaceratops (Episode 191)

Episode 191 is all about Koreaceratops, the first ceratopsian found in Korea.

Big thanks to all our patrons! Your support means so much to us and keeps us going! If you’re a dinosaur enthusiast, join our growing community on Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/iknowdino.

You can listen to our free podcast, with all our episodes, on Apple Podcasts at:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/i-know-dino/id960976813?mt=2

In this episode, we discuss:

News:

  • The ankylosaur Akainacephalus johnsoni was found in Utah with a gryposaur, a turtle, and a crocodile source
  • Dinosaur National Monument has a new paleontologist source
  • A geology instructor donated a large collection of fossils and specimens to the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, Connecticut source
  • A 30 foot inflatable dinosaur named Dino-Mite was briefly stolen from a fireworks store source
  • The Virginia Museum of Natural History in Martinsville, Virginia is having a two-day Dino Festival source
  • York Maze in the UK has opened a 15 acre maze of a T. rex and Triceratops to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Jurassic Park source
  • BBC4 aired the three part series titled Jurassic Coast Revealed source
  • A 1/2 oz pure silver colored Canadian dinosaur coin featuring Edmontonia was released source

The dinosaur of the day: Koreaceratops

  • Basal ceratopsian that lived in the Cretaceous in what is now South Korea
  • Found in a sandstone block that was part of the Tando dam at Hwaseong City (part of it cut off, after the block was extracted)
  • Dam was built in 1994, and a public official first noticed the bones in 2008
  • Described in 2011 by Yuong-Name Lee and colleagues
  • Name means “Korea horn face”
  • Type species is Koreaceratops hwaseongensis
  • Species name refers to Hwaseong City
  • First ceratopsian found in South Korea
  • Found 36 caudal vertebrae, as well as partial hindlimbs and ischia
  • No parts of the skull were found
  • Had tall neural spines on its tail, a feature that may have independently evolved and could have been an adaptation for swimming
  • Tall, deep tail would have looked like a paddle
  • So, may have been semi-aquatic, based on this feature being seen in other animals that use their tail for swimming
  • However, many basal ceratopsians had similar tails, and some even had quill-like structures on the tail to make them seem larger than they were
  • Because of this, basal ceratopsians may have used tail ornamentation for display rather than neck frills and horns like later ceratopsians (though some later large ones, like Triceratops, may have had quill structures)
  • Need more specimens to know for sure why the tail was that way
  • Broad tail may have also have stored fat to help Koreaceratops survive in harsh weather, or fool a predator by making them attack the tail instead of the head, or attract mates or show social status in a herd
  • Koreaceratops helps fill in gaps of ceratopsians originating in Asian and their first appearance in North America
  • Herbivorous
  • Closely related to Archaeoceratops and Cerasinops, so it probably had a parrot-like beak and was about 6 ft (1.8 m) long
  • An in situ replica of Koreaceratops can be seen at the Korean National Science Museum in Daejeon

Fun Fact:

Most dinosaurs couldn’t pronate their lower arms

Sponsors:

This episode is brought to you in part by TRX Dinosaurs, which makes beautiful and realistic dinosaur sculptures, puppets, and animatronics. You can see some amazing examples and works in progress on Instagram @trxdinosaurs

I Know Dino Podcast Show Notes: Guanlong (Episode 147)

In our 147th episode, we got to chat with Jim Kirkland about the Utahraptor Project. (We last spoke with Jim in episode 34, Utahraptor.) The Utahraptor Project is well underway, and already we’re learning new things about these dinosaurs. 

You can help out by donating to the Utahraptor Project on their Go Fund Me page, at https://www.gofundme.com/utahraptor. For just $25, you can make a huge difference in helping scientists learn about these amazing specimens. You can also hear about the latest updates at https://utahraptorsite.com.

And, you can learn more about the area at https://www.utahgeology.org/openjournal/index.php/GIW/article/view/9.

Episode 147 is also about Guanlong, whose name means “”crown dragon.”

Thank you so much to our patrons! For all the dinosaur enthusiasts out there, check out our Patreon page at https://www.patreon.com/iknowdino

You can listen to our free podcast, with all our episodes, on iTunes at:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/i-know-dino/id960976813?mt=2

In this episode, we discuss:

News:

The dinosaur of the day: Guanlong

  • Type species is Guanlong wucaii
  • Proceratosaurid tyrannosauroid that lived in the Late Jurassic in what is now China
  • Guanlong means “crown dragon”
  • Full name means “five color crown dragon”
  • Crown refers to its head crest, which is the most elaborate of known theropods
  • Species name means “five colors” and refers to the colors of the rock of the Wucaiwan, where Guanlong was found
  • Found on a joint expedition in 2002 by scientists from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology and George Washington University
  • Described and named in 2006 by Xu Xing and others
  • Found two individuals, a partially complete adult and a nearly complete juvenile, in the Chinese Shishugou Formation
  • The two specimens were found together, with one lying on top of the other. They fell into a muddy footprint of a large herbivore, possibly Mamenchisaurus, and were trapped. The juvenile probably died first and was trampled by the adult, who came later
  • The adult was about 12 years old, and reached maturity around age 7
  • The juvenile was about 6 years old
  • Looked like Dilong (but with a crest), so may have had primitive feathers, like Dilong
  • The crests are thin and delicate, and may have been used for display (may have been a different color from the body)
  • The adult had a larger crest, which ran from its nostrils to its eye sockets
  • The juvenile’s crest was shorter and only on the snout, and it had longer lower legs and larger eyes than the adult
  • Crest was similar to the crest on Dilophosaurus and Monolophosaurus, and was very pneumatized (had lots of air holes), though Guanlong‘s crest was more delicate
  • One of the oldest known tyrannosaurs
  • Guanlong helps show that tyrannosaurs may have started in Asia
  • Classified as a tyrannosauroid because of the shape of its teeth, and features in the skull and pelvis
  • Part of the family Proceratosauridae, which includes Proceratosaurus, Kileskus, and Sinotyrannus
  • About 9.8 ft (3 m) long, and weighed 100-200 lbs (45-90 kg)
  • Had three fingers on its hands (compared to later tyrannosaurs, that had only two)
  • Probably hunted smaller dinosaurs and mammals
  • May have also been prey for larger dinosaurs, such as the allosaur Yangchuanosaurus
  • Lived in a seasonal climate, with humid summers and dry winters
  • Other animals in the area include sauropods, ornithopods, and small and large theropods, as well as turtles and small mammals
  • Guanlong skeleton is at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in China
  • Can see a life-size reconstruction at the Australian Museum in Sydney
  • Can see Guanlong in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (meant to be a “twist” on a Velociraptor)
  • Can also see Guanlong in Dino Death Trap, a National Geographic documentary
  • There’s also a Guanlong cube (rubix cube). The cube is 3×3 and known for being smooth and priced at an affordable rate

Fun Fact:

Based on fivethirtyeight data

  • Othniel Charles Marsh named 80 species and 23 are considered valid giving him at a success rate of 28.8%; While, Edward Drinker Cope named 64 species but only 9 are still considered valid giving him a success rate of 14.1%
  • Charles H. Sternberg’s middle son, Charles M. Sternberg named far fewer than cope or marsh @ 19 species but nearly half of them (8) are still considered valid.
    • Better known dinosaurs he described include:
      • Ankylosaur: Anodontosaurus
      • Nodosaur: Edmontonia
      • Ceratopsian: Pachyrhinosaurus (the one without major facial horns, but instead large flat boney bosses)
      • Hadrosaur: Brachylophosaurus (exceptionally well preserved)
    • Many of his discoveries were made in Canada, and he later went on to help establish Dinosaur Provincial Park there. Like his father Charles M. Sternberg lived a long time (1885-1981)

I Know Dino Podcast Show Notes: Edmontonia (Episode 102)

In our 102nd episode, we had the pleasure of speaking with Peter May, President of Research Casting International.

Episode 102 is also about Edmontonia, a nodosaur found in the Edmonton Formation in Canada that had shoulder spikes.

Are you a dinosaur enthusiast? Join our growing community on Patreon!

https://www.patreon.com/iknowdino

Thank you! Thank you to all our current Patreon supporters!

You can listen to our free podcast, with all our episodes, on iTunes at:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/i-know-dino/id960976813?mt=2

In this episode, we discuss:

  • The dinosaur of the day: Edmontonia
  • Named after the Edmonton Formation (now the Horseshow Canyon Formation, in Canada) where it was found
  • Part of the nodosaur family
  • Lived in the Late Cretaceous
  • Charles Sternberg named the type species, Edmontonia longiceps, in 1928. Longiceps means “long headed” in Latin
  • Charles Sternberg did not classify Edmontonia, and L.S. Russell classified it as Nodosauridae in 1930 (which has been confirmed)
  • George Paterson, the teamster on an expedition Charles Sternberg led, found Edmontonia longiceps in 1924 (on that expedition). He found a skull, lower right jaw and a lot of the postcranial skeleton, including the armor
  • Barnum Brown found Edmontonia rugosidens in 1915 in Alberta, Canada, and sent it to the American Museum of Natural History (though it wasn’t yet named). William Diller Matthew referred the specimen to Palaeoscincus in 1922 in a popular science article, without naming the species. It was supposed to name a new species, in conjnction with Brown, but the article wasn’t published. Matthew also referred another specimen found by Levi Sternberg in 1917. Then in 1930 Charles Gilmore referred both of these specimens to Palaeoscincus rugosidens, based on a type speciment found in 1928 by George Fryer Sternberg. The species name means “rough tooth.” In 1940 Lori Shano Russell referred all three specimens to Edmontonia rugosidens
  • Two main Edmontonia species: type species Edmontonia longiceps, and Edmontonia rugosidens (which had its own genus for a while, Chassternbergia, named by Bob Bakker as a subgenus in 1988 based on living before Edmontonia longiceps and have a different skull proportion. Then George Olshevsky gave it the full generic name in 1991. The name honors Charles “Chas” Sternberg though this subgenus/genus name is rarely applied. Later finds have been referred to Edmontonia rugosidens)
  • In 1971 Walter Preston Coombs Jr. renamed the two main Edmontonia specia to Panoplosaurus longiceps and Panoplosaurus rudosidens but the name Edmontonia was later revived
  • Other species: Edmontonia schlessmani (originally Denversaurus schlessmani until 1992), Edmontonia australis (named in 2000 by Tracy Lee Ford) though now considered to be a junior synonym of Glyptodontopelta mimus
  • Gregory Paul suggested in 2010 that Edmontonia rugosidens was a direct ancestor of Edmontonia longiceps, which was a direct ancestor of Edmontonia schlessmani
  • Bulky and like a tank. About 22 ft (6.6 m) long, though Gregory Paul estimated in 2010 that two of the Edmontonia species, Edmontonia longiceps and Edmontonia rugosidens, were about 20 ft (6 m) long and weighed 3 tons
  • Had a pear like shaped skull (when viewed from above)
  • Body had many osteoderms
  • Plates protected its neck and shoulders
  • Had small bony plates on its back and head and sharp spikes along its sides. Four largest spikes were on its shoulders. In Edmontonia rugosidens, the second set of spikes on its shoulders split into subspines
  • Edmontonia longiceps spikes were relatively small, size of spikes varied in Edmontonia rugosidens
  • Shoulder spikes had solid bases
  • Probably had large spikes to attract mates or defend territory, also to intimidate rivals or predators or for self defense
  • Shoulder spikes wouldn’t have been great defense, since they only covered the shoulders (probably not great against large theropods liks Albertosaurus and Dapletosaurus)
  • Spikes could have been like horns, where Edmontonia locked them to show dominance
  • Kenneth Carpenter described traits of Edmontonia in 1990, by comparing it with close relative Panoplosaurus (snout had parallel sides, skull armor was smooth on the surface, had shorter neural arches and neural spines than Panoplosaurus)
  • Carpenter also showed how two of the Edmontonia species were different. Edmontonia rugosidens did not have sideways projecting osteoderms behind its eye sockets, and Edmontonia longiceps did not have an ossified cheek plate
  • Skull was up to 1.6 ft (0.5 m) long and elongated, with a horny upper beak
  • Had a “paranasal” tract that ran along the outside of the nasal cavity (first time found in a nodosaurid, but not an ankylosaurid, which had more complex air tracts
  • May have stayed low to the ground to prevent predators from flipping them over and attacking their underbelly
  • Did not have a tail club (like ankylosaurids) and had a narrower mouth than ankylosaurids
  • Edmontonia appeared in “Dinosaurs: Unextinct” at the L.A. Zoo,” a new exhibit that opens April 15 and runs through Oct. 31.
  • Also at the LA County Fair this year (ended in Sept)
  • Also part of an exhibit at the NC Aquarium this year (ended in Sept)
  • Nodosauridae is a family of ankylosaurs
  • They lived in the late Jurassic to late Cretaceous in what is now North America, Europe, Asia, and Antarctica
  • They were medium to large, and heavy
  • Quadrupedal herbivores
  • Had osteoderms on their bodies
  • Fun fact: An homage to Dippy… Dippy has been on display at the Natural History Museum in London since 1905. A cast was ordered from the U.S. after King Edward the 7th saw Carnegie’s sketch of the original. In 2017 its 292 bones will be packed up and it will tour the U.K. for at least a few months.

This episode was brought to you by:

The Royal Tyrrell Museum. The Royal Tyrrell Museum is located in southern Alberta, Canada. One of the top paleontological research institutes in the world, the entire museum is dedicated to the science of paleontology. It’s definitely a must see for every dinosaur enthusiast. More information can be found at tyrrellmuseum.com.

For those who may prefer reading, see below for the full transcript of our interview with Peter May:

Continue Reading …

Follow Us