Four bones found on a beach on the Isle of Wight, off England’s south coast, belong to a new species of theropod dinosaur, the group that includes Tyrannosaurus rex, researchers at the University of Southampton said on Wednesday.
The new dinosaur, which has been named Vectaerovenator inopinatus, lived in the Cretaceous period 115 million years ago and was estimated to have been up to 4m long, the palaeontologists said.
The name refers to the large air spaces found in the bones, which were discovered last year on the foreshore at Shanklin, a seaside resort on the island.
Photo: Reuters / Robin Ward
The air sacs, which are also seen in modern birds, were extensions of the lung, the researchers said, and likely they helped fuel an efficient breathing system while also making the skeleton lighter.
“The joy of finding the bones we discovered was absolutely fantastic,” said one of the finders, Robin Ward, a regular fossil hunter from Stratford-upon-Avon.
“I thought they were special and so took them along when we visited Dinosaur Isle Museum,” he said. “They immediately knew these were something rare and asked if we could donate them to the museum to be fully researched.”
James Lockyer, from Spalding in Lincolnshire, was also visiting the island when he found another of the bones.
“I was searching a spot at Shanklin and had been told and read that I wouldn’t find much there,” he said. “However, I always make sure I search the areas others do not, and on this occasion it paid off.”
“We were struck by just how hollow the animal was — it’s riddled with air spaces. Parts of its skeleton must have been rather delicate,” said Chris Barker, a doctoral student who led the study.
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