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Ed Yeates reporting Scientists from Utah and Mexico today announced the discovery of a huge new dinosaur with a sail-like crest perched on top of its head. The rare find in Mexico involved an international expedition comprised of researchers from three countries.
This new kind of a duckbill dinosaur was not only impressive to see, but to hear as well. It was unearthed in an area of Mexico that's probably covering hundreds of other new dinosaurs.
The dinosaur was found in Coahuila, Mexico. The formation is rugged, but the payoff was worth it. Its new name is Velafrons coahuilensis.
With its huge sail-like crest, air passed through twisting nasal passages from the snout into the crest and finally through a hole above their eyes. The plant eater, though young, was big.
"Despite being a teenager, it's still 25 to 30 feet long and it's going to continue growing many, many years. And by the time it's complete, it's going to be about 35 feet long, and that's about the size of a T rex," explained Terry Gates, paleontologist at the Utah Museum of Natural History.
Representatives from Mexico joined paleontologists from the museum to show off the new discovery.
Many duckbills have crests, but Velafrons' snout was something else. Seventy-two to 150 million years later, these bones really don't have much to say. But this particular species of duckbill dinosaur was a real trumpeter.
In fact, Gates says had we approached a herd of these things 72 million years ago "it would sound like a giant orchestra tuning, possibly, or even a large party. These guys just hanging out tootin', trying to attract the females."
Seventy-two million years ago, one big stretch from Canada to Mexico was under water with dinosaurs living on a peninsula. New and really big ones thrived and died in what is now Mexico.
"Given what we know about North America at this time, virtually every dinosaur that we can identify will turn out to be a new species in Mexico, and that's what makes it exciting too," said Scott Sampson, also a paleontologist at the Utah Museum of Natural History.
The international expedition continues. Besides the new duckbill, a new kind of horned dinosaur with a 7-foot skull is also being unearthed in Mexico.
