NEWS - A Kyrgyz-German paleontological team has unearthed the fossils of two specimens of a new species of predatory dinosaur near Tashkumyr in southwestern Kyrgyzstan in one of the most important finds in Central Asia. The new discovery is significant because Alpkarakush kyrgyzicus is the first theropod dinosaur in Central Asia.
Theropod dinosaurs date back to the Mesozoic Era and include Tyrannosaurus, Allosaurus and modern birds. Allosaurus was widespread during the Jurassic Period in North America and southwestern Europe, while Metriacanthosaurus lived in China. But so far, central Europe and East Asia have been terra incognita, meaning there is no trace of the Jurassic period.
The first fossil remains were discovered in 2006 by Kyrgyz paleontologist Aizek Bakirov in a mountainous desert region near the city of Tashkumyr. The exposed Balabansai Formation sediments were deposited during the Middle Jurassic period about 165 million years ago.
Several excavation operations between 2006 and 2023 found skull bones, dorsal and pelvic vertebrae, fragments of the shoulder girdle and forelimbs, an almost complete pelvic girdle and hind limbs with a length of 8-9 meters. This is a new genus and species with previously unknown characteristics.
A unique feature found is the very prominent "eyebrow" on the so-called postorbital bone, the skull bone behind the eye opening, which suggests the presence of horns at this point. Other strange features were found on the dorsal vertebrae and the thigh bone.
The new species belongs to the metriacanthosaurids which are closely related to the large predatory dinosaurs of East Asia. Paleontologists suggest the origin of metriacanthosaurids and other important theropod groups in Southeast Asia from where they spread to other continents via Central Asia and Europe.
"Although the affiliation of Alpkarakush with metriacanthosaurids is not necessarily surprising, this finding fills a major gap in the Jurassic theropods. We have new insights into the evolution and biogeography of these animals," says Oliver Rauhut of the Bavarian Collection of Paleontology and Geology (SNSB-BSPG) in Munich.
The second specimen is slightly smaller. The internal bone structure reveals that it was almost an adult, at least 17 years old and sexually mature, while the smaller individual was still a juvenile. Perhaps the mother animal was on a tour with her offspring 165 million years ago.
"The models are now available online and enable researchers worldwide to carry out further studies and make 3D prints," says Oliver Wings, Director of the Bamberg Natural History Museum.
Original research
Oliver W M Rauhut, Aizek A Bakirov, Oliver Wings, Alexandra E Fernandes, Tom R Hübner, A new theropod dinosaur from the Callovian Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, Volume 201, Issue 4, August 2024, zlae090, DOI:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae090
Theropod dinosaurs date back to the Mesozoic Era and include Tyrannosaurus, Allosaurus and modern birds. Allosaurus was widespread during the Jurassic Period in North America and southwestern Europe, while Metriacanthosaurus lived in China. But so far, central Europe and East Asia have been terra incognita, meaning there is no trace of the Jurassic period.
The first fossil remains were discovered in 2006 by Kyrgyz paleontologist Aizek Bakirov in a mountainous desert region near the city of Tashkumyr. The exposed Balabansai Formation sediments were deposited during the Middle Jurassic period about 165 million years ago.
Several excavation operations between 2006 and 2023 found skull bones, dorsal and pelvic vertebrae, fragments of the shoulder girdle and forelimbs, an almost complete pelvic girdle and hind limbs with a length of 8-9 meters. This is a new genus and species with previously unknown characteristics.
A unique feature found is the very prominent "eyebrow" on the so-called postorbital bone, the skull bone behind the eye opening, which suggests the presence of horns at this point. Other strange features were found on the dorsal vertebrae and the thigh bone.
The new species belongs to the metriacanthosaurids which are closely related to the large predatory dinosaurs of East Asia. Paleontologists suggest the origin of metriacanthosaurids and other important theropod groups in Southeast Asia from where they spread to other continents via Central Asia and Europe.
"Although the affiliation of Alpkarakush with metriacanthosaurids is not necessarily surprising, this finding fills a major gap in the Jurassic theropods. We have new insights into the evolution and biogeography of these animals," says Oliver Rauhut of the Bavarian Collection of Paleontology and Geology (SNSB-BSPG) in Munich.
The second specimen is slightly smaller. The internal bone structure reveals that it was almost an adult, at least 17 years old and sexually mature, while the smaller individual was still a juvenile. Perhaps the mother animal was on a tour with her offspring 165 million years ago.
"The models are now available online and enable researchers worldwide to carry out further studies and make 3D prints," says Oliver Wings, Director of the Bamberg Natural History Museum.
Original research
Oliver W M Rauhut, Aizek A Bakirov, Oliver Wings, Alexandra E Fernandes, Tom R Hübner, A new theropod dinosaur from the Callovian Balabansai Formation of Kyrgyzstan, Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, Volume 201, Issue 4, August 2024, zlae090, DOI:10.1093/zoolinnean/zlae090
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