Argentine paleontologists have discovered the remains of a huge new type of long-necked herbivorous dinosaur in the southern Patagonia region of the country, saying that this beast is one of the largest ever discovered.
The discovery in the Pueblo Blanco Nature Reserve, which was put on display Thursday, was first discovered by scientists in 2018. The dinosaur bones were so large that they caused the truck carrying them to the Buenos Aires laboratory to overturn, although no one was injured. And the residue was left intact.
Paleontologist Nicholas Chimento said the scientists decided to name the dinosaur “Chukarosaurus deribinda,” meaning boiled and shredded, because it rolled over and survived the crash.
At 50 tons and 30 meters long, Chucarosaurus is the largest dinosaur ever discovered in the mountainous province of Rio Negro. She would have lived in the late Cretaceous period along with predators, fish and sea turtles.
[1/2] A bone belonging to “Chucarosaurus Diripienda,” a newly discovered giant species of long-necked herbivorous dinosaur, is photographed next to a shovel, in the Pueblo Blanco Nature Reserve, in Rio Negro, Argentina, October 16, 2019. Nicolas Chimento / Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales / Posted via Reuters
Scientists said the Chucarosaurus femur, which spanned 1.90 metres, broke into three parts, each weighing more than 100 kilograms and requiring at least three people to lift it.
Patagonia was home to the world’s largest plant-eating dinosaurs such as the massive Patagotitan Mayor, the largest dinosaur ever discovered, although scientists still don’t know why species there grew so quickly and in some cases never stopped growing their entire lives.
Paleontologist Matias Mota said that while Chucarosaurus, a sauropod, rivaled other Patagonian giants in size and weight, characteristics in its hips, forelimbs, and hind limbs indicated that it was more agile and agile.
About 140 species of dinosaurs have been discovered in Argentina, which is among the top three countries in the world in terms of research and discoveries alongside China and the United States.
The studies were conducted by researchers from the Bernardino Rivadavia Museum of Natural Sciences, the Azara Foundation and the Conicet National Research Council with support from the National Geographic Society.
(Reporting by Lucila Segal) Writing by Sarah Moreland. Editing by David Gregorio
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