A team of archaeologists have discovered the fossilised remains of a 72 million-year-old dinosaur tail in a desert in northern Mexico, it has been announced.
The five-yard-long tail was the first ever discovered in Mexico, according to Francisco Aguilar, head of the nation’s National Institute for Anthropology and History. It was ‘unusually well-preserved’.
The fossil was recognized as belonging to a hadrosaur, or duck-billed dinosaur, by the team of archaeologists and students from INAH and the National Autonomous University of Mexico.
Relic: The researchers found the ancient dinosaur tail in Coahuila State in Mexico
The five-yard-long tail was the first ever discovered in Mexico and was “unusually well-preserved.” It dates back 72 million years.
According to Aguilar, the tail, which was discovered close to the small town of General Cepeda in the border state of Coahuila, possibly made about half of the dinosaur’s length.
After spending 20 days painstakingly lifting a sedimentary boulder hiding the creature’s bones in the desert, archaeologists discovered the 50 vertebrae of the tail to be entirely intact.
Other fossilized bones, including one of the dinosaur’s hips, were scattered everywhere around the tail, according to INAH.
Precision: Archaeologists painstakingly excavate the tail
Speaker for the dead: The tail, from a hadrosaur, will enable experts to learn about bone conditions that affected the colossal beasts
This is the first dinosaur tail discovered in Mexico, despite the nation having a rich paleontological history.
Strewn around the tail were other fossilised bones, including one of the dinosaur’s hips
Dinosaur tail finds are relatively rare, according to INAH.
According to Aguilar, the new discovery could further knowledge of the hadrosaur clade and aid in the study of diseases that affected dinosaur bones that resembled those of humans.
Scientists have already established, for instance, that dinosaurs experienced pain and malignancies.
In addition to the other northern desert states of Mexico, dinosaur remains have been discovered in numerous locations throughout the state of Coahuila.
‘We have a very rich history of paleontology,’ Aguilar said.
He noted that during the Cretaceous period, which ended about 65 million years ago, much of what is now central northern Mexico was on the coast.
This has enabled researchers to unearth remains of both marine and land-based dinosaurs.
Locals informed INAH of the location of the remains in June 2012. Early this month, excavation started after preliminary inspections. The tail’s remains will be delivered to General Cepeda for cleaning and more research.
Src: kenhthoisu
