Episode 308 is all about Tarascosaurus, a French abelisaurid named after a lion-headed, turtle-shelled, six-footed, dragon myth.
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In this episode, we discuss:
News:
- The Evolution and Biology of Non-Avian Theropods session of SVP explored Tyrannosaurus growth, Allosaurus teeth, new finds from all over the world, and much more source
- A 5-year-old in China found five 130 million year old theropod dinosaur footprints on a family trip to Chaoyang in Sichuan, China source
- The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has a collection of dinosaur fossils including the Nation’s T. rex source
- Kronosaurus Korner, a museum in Queensland, Australia recently launched an app so people can visit virtually source
- In Singapore, there’s a new permanent outdoor animatronic dinosaur display called Jurassic Mile source
- In Malaga, Spain, a Jurassic Park style theme park will be opening next year source
- Some intrigue around whether Disney plans to reimagine the dinosaurs in the Disney Animal Kingdom ride, Dinosaur source
- Jurassic World: Dominion released some more photos including a baby Lystrosaurus, which is not a dinosaur, wearing a mask source
The dinosaur of the day: Tarascosaurus
- Abelisaurid theropod that lived in the Late Cretaceous in what is now France (Fuvelian Beds)
- Carnivorous
- Based on the femur, estimated to be about 6.5-10 ft (2-3 m) long
- Type species is Tarascosaurus salluvicus
- Named in 1991 by Jean Le Loeuff and Éric Buffetaut
- Genus name means “Tarasque lizard”
- Tarasque is a mythical dragon from Provence, France that had a lion-like head, a turtle-like shell, six feet with bear-like claws, and a scaly serpent-like tail
- Species name refers to Salluvii, a Gallic tribe that lived near Mareilles
- In 1988 Éric Buffetaut identified an upper jaw found near Pourcieux as an abelisaurid, and then later looked at other large theropod fossils found in the Late Cretaceous in Europe, and found they were abelisaurids
- Then he found what became Tarascosaurus bones in the collection of the University of Lyon, found by an unknown collector on the steep slopes of Lambeau du Beausset
- Holotype is part of a thigh bone, about 8.7 in (22 cm) long
- Paratype includes two dorsal vertebrae, which may be from the same individual as the holotype
- Other referred fossils include a damaged tail vertebra, and fossils from Spain
- Considered a nomen dubium in 2003 by Oliver Rauhut because the fossils are too fragmentary and not distinct (diagnostic)
- Said that abelisauroids in France during the Late Cretaceous was likely, but more fossils need to be found to show the phylogeny
Fun Fact: Some large turtles turn into hypercarnivores, even eating other turtles.
