New herbivorous dinosaur discovered in England

Fossilized remains of a small dinosaur slightly larger than a chicken have been discovered on the Isle of Wight in the south of the United Kingdom by a team of professional and amateur paleontologists associated with the Universities of Bath and Portsmouth.

Appointed Vectidromius insularisThis bipedal herbivorous dinosaur belongs to the hypsilophodontid family, which includes moderate-sized (1 to 4 m) species with small hands and 5-fingered and 4-toed feet.

These dinosaurs lived in Europe, Oceania, Asia, and North America from the Middle Jurassic to the end of the Cretaceous (approximately 165 to 66 million years ago).

The Vectidromius insularisIt belongs to a new genus and species that coexisted with the first tyrannosaurs, spinosaurs, and iguanodons about 125 million years ago.

According to Professor Nicholas Longrich of the University of Bath, the sample is likely to be young adults.

vectidromous A close relative ofHypsilophodon foxii, one of the first dinosaurs described from nearly complete remains. Small and slender, with bird-like hind legs, hypsylophodonts were used by biologist Thomas Henry Huxley to demonstrate the relationship between birds and dinosaurs.

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Hypsilophodon Also was on the Isle of Wight. Differences between this dinosaur and vectidromous In relation to certain details of the pelvic bones, this suggests that the two species are related, but distinct.

We were in a strange position. One of the first dinosaur families to be identified consisted of only one species… and now we have two!

An island and its treasures

Paleontologists have been on the Isle of Wight for over a century. But in recent years, heavy erosion of the rocks along the beaches has allowed the discovery of new fossils.

vectidromous It is the seventh dinosaur species discovered in the past four years, thanks to local fossil collectorsProfessor Dave Martle says in a press release issued by the University of Portsmouth.

Paleontologists are now trying to reconstruct the relationships of the species Not particularly close to those found in North America, Asia, or the Southern HemisphereProf. Longrich refers to his role.

After the breakup of Pangea, many species became isolated, leading to different types of dinosaurs appearing on each of the new continents.he added.

Details of this work are published in the journal Cretaceous Research (new window) (in English).