fossils

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Hiker's Find Leads to Trove of Fossils Predating Dinosaurs

Hundreds of imprints of plants, animals, even raindrops discovered in northern Italian Alps

(Newser) - Claudia Steffensen was hiking in the Italian Alps last summer when she stepped on a rock that caught her eye. "It seemed more like a slab of cement" with "these strange circular designs with wavy lines," Steffensen tells the Guardian. "I took a closer look and...

In Hong Kong, a Big First on the Dinosaur Front

Officials say they've discovered dinosaur fossils on remote, uninhabited Port Island

(Newser) - Officials in Hong Kong said Wednesday they've discovered dinosaur fossils in the city for the first time on a remote, uninhabited island that's part of a UNESCO Global Geopark. Experts have initially confirmed the fossils were part of a large dinosaur from the Cretaceous period, which stretched from...

This Ancient Giant Bug Grew to 8 or 9 Feet

Scientists use fossils, CT scans to re-create head of Arthropleura insect

(Newser) - As if the largest bug to ever live—a monster nearly 9 feet long with several dozen legs—wasn't terrifying enough, scientists could only just imagine what the extinct beast's head looked like. That's because many of the fossils of these creatures are headless shells that were...

In Prehistoric Fossils, a Surprising Find on Aging
In Prehistoric Fossils,
a Surprising Find on Aging
NEW STUDY
Jul 26, 2024 12:20 PM CDT

In Prehistoric Fossils, a Surprising Find on Aging

Mouselike mammals lived a lot longer than modern-day counterparts, say scientists

(Newser) - Two sets of fossils found 40-something years apart suggest that small mammals who lived during the mid-Jurassic period had a longer "childhood" and a more stretched-out life span than their contemporary counterparts. The new research published Wednesday in the journal Nature examined the fossilized remains of Krusatodon kirtlingtonensis, a...

Biggest Stegosaurus Fossil Ever Found Sells for $44.6M

Buyer says it 'was born in America and is going to stay in America'

(Newser) - A stegosaurus fossil found in Colorado two years ago has become the most valuable fossil ever sold, fetching $44.6 million at an auction in New York City. Sotheby's says the stegosaurus, nicknamed Apex, sold for more than 11 times pre-sale estimates, the BBC reports. Apex, found by fossil...

Dinosaurs' Extinction May Have Been the Birth of Wine

Plant that gave rise to commercial grapes spread in dense forests after asteroid impact

(Newser) - Had an asteroid not struck the planet some 66 million years ago, dinosaurs might still exist—but there would potentially be no wine. According to researchers, grapes might have originated only after the Chicxulub impact transformed the environment, wiping out 76% of all living species, per IFL Science . "We...

Welcome to the Poozeum. Yes, It's a Poop Museum

Arizona museum has some record-setting pieces of feces on display—and a lot of them

(Newser) - One way to tell how a Tyrannosaurus rex digested food is to look at its poop. Bone fragments in a piece of fossilized excrement at a new museum in northern Arizona—aptly called the Poozeum—are among the tinier bits of evidence that indicate T. rex wasn't much of...

With Great Ape Discovery, a Possible Evolutionary Bombshell

Study suggests Europe was a hotbed for great ape evolution, and possible cradle of humanity

(Newser) - For the first time, researchers have found evidence that two distinct species of great apes coexisted outside of Africa many millions of years ago. It's an important, though contested, discovery that suggests European ecosystems in the Miocene Epoch, from about 23 million to 5 million years ago, "enabled,...

Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex
Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex
Jun 5, 2024 11:35 AM CDT

Boys' Find of a Lifetime: T. Rex

Now the fossil is starring in a Denver museum exhibit and a documentary

(Newser) - Two young brothers and their cousin were wandering a fossil-rich stretch of the North Dakota Badlands when they made a discovery that left them "completely speechless": a T. rex bone poking out of the ground. As the AP reports, the trio announced their discovery publicly Monday as workers at...

Girl, 11, Helps Discover Largest Ever Reptile
Girl, 11, Helps Discover
Largest Ever Reptile
NEW STUDY
May 11, 2024 1:50 PM CDT

Girl, 11, Helps Discover Largest Ever Reptile

Ichthyotitan severnensis estimated at 82 feet long, with a 7-foot-long jawbone

(Newser) - It was the largest reptile to ever prowl Earth's oceans. At some 82 feet, this giant ichthyosaur would've been nearly as large as a blue whale, a marine mammal and the largest animal known to exist at any point in the planet's history. Yet the ichthyosaur, dubbed...

Dino 'From Hell' Suggests There Was No Decline
Dino 'From Hell' Suggests
There Was No Decline
NEW STUDY
Feb 1, 2024 12:50 PM CST

Dino 'From Hell' Suggests There Was No Decline

New caenagnathid species, and a possible second, suggest this dino family was doing fine

(Newser) - Paleontologists have been debating whether the asteroid that killed non-avian dinosaurs took out a varied group of thriving reptiles or one already in decline . Now, researchers say they've discovered a new dinosaur species whose very existence disputes the latter argument. The argument is largely based on apparent declines in...

This Modern-Looking Reptile Skin Is Nearly 300M Years Old
This Skin Is Nearly
300M Years Old
NEW STUDY
Jan 12, 2024 9:21 AM CST

This Skin Is Nearly 300M Years Old

Fossilized sample predating the dinosaurs represents oldest epidermis ever found

(Newser) - It looks a lot like crocodile skin, with a pebblelike texture someone might desire for a purse. But for the small sample size, you'd never guess it's 289 million years old, dating to the late Paleozoic Era, when many species were just beginning to venture from water to...

In Birdlike Tracks, an Evolution Mystery
'We're Pretty Sure
It's Not a Bird'
NEW STUDY
Dec 5, 2023 12:53 PM CST

'We're Pretty Sure It's Not a Bird'

But what made bird-like tracks before birds existed isn't clear

(Newser) - The earliest known fossils attributed to ancestors of modern birds date to around 160 million years ago, which is why birdlike tracks discovered in southern Africa and dated to tens of millions of years earlier have become a fascinating topic of discussion for paleontologists. In reviewing 163 tracks found across...

This Guy Might've Been the Heaviest Animal Earth's Seen

Meet the long-extinct Perucetus colossus

(Newser) - There could be a new contender for heaviest animal to ever live. While today's blue whale has long held the title, the AP reports that scientists have dug up fossils from an ancient giant that could tip the scales. Researchers described the new species—named Perucetus colossus, or "...

Claim on Joe Rogan Podcast Sparks a 'Bone Rush' in NYC

Gold miner John Reeves says mammoth bones were dumped in East River in the 1940s

(Newser) - Ask people what you might find buried in the muck at the bottom of New York City's East River and they'd likely say "mob boss" before thinking of mammoth bones. But several groups of treasure hunters have taken to the waterway in recent weeks after hearing a...

Veteran Fossil Hunter, Age 9, Makes a Rare Find

Molly Sampson wades out and spots giant megalodon tooth

(Newser) - Molly Sampson has been searching for a giant megalodon tooth for eight of her nine years. "She's been shark tooth hunting since age 1 when she would crawl along the beach," said her mother, Alicia. When Molly opened the insulated wading boots that she'd asked for...

A Scientific Misfire Gave Us 'Nebraska Man'
A Scientific Misfire Gave Us
'Nebraska Man'
longform
Jan 6, 2023 1:56 PM CST

A Scientific Misfire Gave Us 'Nebraska Man'

In the 1920s, an old tooth was misinterpreted in a very public way

(Newser) - For a while in the 1920s, it appeared that we'd be talking about "Nebraska Man" for generations as an evolutionary milestone. But as Madeline Bodin writes at Atavist , the name has since faded into obscurity for good reason—it was a very public scientific misfire. The saga began...

Ancient Marine Graveyard May Have Been Maternity Ward
Fossil Site May Be
'Ancient Maternity Ward'
NEW STUDY
Dec 20, 2022 1:17 PM CST

Fossil Site May Be 'Ancient Maternity Ward'

Researchers describe how ancient ichthyosaurs traveled to Nevada site to give birth

(Newser) - Scientists have uncovered new clues about a curious fossil site in Nevada, a graveyard for dozens of giant marine reptiles. Instead of the site of a massive die-off as suspected, it might have been an ancient maternity ward where the creatures came to give birth, per the AP . The site...

Christie's Abruptly Axes T. Rex Auction

US firm noticed skeleton, which Christie's was to auction off in Hong Kong, borrowed a lot from 'Stan'

(Newser) - A 15-foot-tall T. rex skeleton that was unearthed in Montana had been set to be put on the auction block later this month. Now, Christie's has yanked the bone set nicknamed Shen from the Hong Kong sale, after an American fossil firm questioned some of the skeleton's parts....

Researchers Create Model of Huge, Ancient Shark
Researchers Create Model
of Huge, Ancient Shark
new study
Aug 20, 2022 5:45 PM CDT

Researchers Create Model of Huge, Ancient Shark

Megalodon could have devoured a killer whale in 5 bites, research shows

(Newser) - Today's sharks have nothing on their ancient cousins. A giant shark that roamed the oceans millions of years ago could have devoured a creature the size of a killer whale in just five bites, new research suggests. For their study published this week, researchers used fossil evidence to create...

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