Zuniceratops - Episode 206

Dinosaur of the day Zuniceratops, a ceratopsian that was discovered in New Mexico by an 8 year-old. Interview with Jingmai O'Connor, professor at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences who recently described the first ever fossilized dinosaur lung remains. In dinosaur news this week:A 130 million year old fossil from Hebei Province in China has been foundThe “Baofenglong fossil” recently went on display at Chongqing Yongchuan Museum Town Hall in China. An 80% complete 49 ft (15 m) long herbivoreResidents near the Tumbler Ridge Museum voted to fund the museum with added attractions and servicesMost sauropod fossils are from adults. Dwarf sauropods have a younger distribution, but still mostly adultsSeveral models of Yi qi extra wrist bone were proposed to find an orientation that may have worked with its patagial membranesFlight evolution can be categorized into 4 evolutionary phases: characters unrelated to flight, exapted traits, direct selection, and traits for longer flight durationPterosaurs and maniraptorans couldn’t assume a bat-like poseMicroraptor & Rahonavis could glide, Changyuraptor used it's tail for pitch control, but troodontids were too big (relative to their wings) to get off the groundIchthyornis has a skull half way between Archaeopteryx and modern birds"Birds are the only group of animals that rival mammals in terms of brain size"Sauropod trackway “gauge” might not mean muchA synchrotron of coprolite from an early dinosaur like Silesaurus opelensis showed lots of beetle remains including wings & beetle tibiaBased on carbon-13 isotopes in Deinonychus and Tenontosaurus it appears that raptors were not pack huntersThanks to guinea fowl walking through soft mud we are closer than ever to recreate how dinosaurs made their tracksThe pectoralis of Archaeopteryx was smaller than modern birds, but may have still been large enough to achieve brief flightA study of Psittacosaurus braincases shows that 2 year-old brains elongate significantly (midbrain & olfactory tract/bulbs especially)Ugrunaaluk was smaller than its massive cousins like Edmontosaurus, possibly because of dwarfism from living in the arctic reaching about 18-19ft longA new ceratopsian was found in Grand staircase Escalante National MonumentThis 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 And by Permia, makers of the coolest prehistoric clothing and collectibles this side of the Holocene! Their scientifically accurate t-shirts, hoodies, stickers, and figurines are available now. Get $5 off orders of $35 or more with the promo code IKNOWDINO To get access to lots of patron only content check out https://www.patreon.com/iknowdino For links to every news story, all of the details we shared about Zuniceratops, more links from Jingmai O'Connor, and our fun fact check out https://iknowdino.com/Zuniceratops-Episode-206/ See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.