2023-07-18 14:10:34
Updated Tuesday, July 18, 2023 – 2:10 p.m.
Discover the largest ornithpod dinosaur of Europe’s Jursico. The new specimen has been christened ‘Oblitosaurus bunnueli’ in honor of film director Luis Buuel
DINPOLIS
An investigation carried out by researchers from the Conjunto Paleontológico de Teruel-Dinpolis Foundation has resulted in the description of a new genus and a new species of ornithopod dinosaur, the oblitosaurus (forgotten lizard). It has been baptized as Oblitosaurus bunnueli in honor of the Calanda film director, Luis Buuel.
The details of the investigation have been made public this Tuesday in the latest issue of the prestigious scientific journal Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society.
The Oblitosaurus is the largest ornithopod of the Jurassic of Europe, since its length could reach seven meters, and it inhabited the coastal ecosystems of the eastern peninsula during the Late Jurassic, approximately 150-145 million years ago.
The Oblitosaurus bunnueli fossils (femur, tibia, febula, calcaneus, talus, metatarsus, phalanges of the foot and hand, and a tooth) come from paleontological excavations carried out by the Dinpolis Foundation at the Barrihonda-El Humero site, located in Upper Jurassic sediments of the municipality of Riodeva.
From this same site come the fossils of the largest saurpod dinosaur defined in Europe to date, Turiasaurus riodevensis, and fossils of the stegosaurus Dacentrurus armatus, among other vertebrates and invertebrates.
Ornithopod dinosaurs were characterized by feeding on plants, walking bipedally and/or quadrupedally, having a skully beak, a short neck, exhibiting a thumb turned into a small conical spur, and lacking armor.
Its size was unusually large for an ornithopod from this geologic time period. In fact, its dimensions resemble other more modern ornithopods from the Lower Cretaceous, some 125 million years ago.
A NEW SPECIES
Sergio Sánchez Fenollosa, first author of the study, has indicated that “the presence of unique characteristics present in the fossil bones studied, different from those of other similar dinosaurs, has allowed us to define this new genus and this new species of ornithopod dinosaur.”
He added that “these characteristics, along with others including its size, are what make Oblitosaurus bunnueli a very important dinosaur for understanding and reconstructing the evolutionary history of this lineage, all in a context in which the fossils of this type of dinosaur they are especially rare in the European Jurassic. Likewise, our study has allowed us to reveal the identity of a possible producer of the large ornithopod footprints found in the Upper Jurassic of the entire Iberian Peninsula.”
For his part, Francisco Javier Verd, co-author of the publication, explained that “Oblitosaurus bunnueli allows us to better understand the diversity of this group of dinosaurs during the Jurassic. In addition, the analysis of the evolutionary relationships of Oblitosaurus with other ornithopods It has allowed us to redefine what hookworms are and have more evidence to resolve the relationship between the species of the genus Camptosaurus, whose fossils have been discovered in North America and Europe.”
Alberto Cobos, managing director of the Dinpolis Foundation and co-author of the study, stated that “after planning an exhaustive study of these ornithopod fossils, we have achieved excellent scientific results.”
In his opinion, “in some way it can be said that, due to the large dimensions of the sauropod and stegosaur fossils from this same site, those assigned to ornithopods had gone somewhat unnoticed.”
He adds that “that is why we have named the genus of the new dinosaur, Oblitosaurus, the forgotten lizard and, through one of its best-known films, Los Olvidados, we have linked it to one of the most famous directors in the history of cinema, the Turolense Luis Buuel; hence the name of the new species O. bunnueli”.
Cobo explained that “this global framework gives a strictly paleontological investigation an additional value that promotes the dissemination of the cinematographic heritage of Spain and Mexico. Without a doubt, this publication is the best way to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Fundación Conjunto Paleontológico of Teruel-Dinpolis and to pay homage to Luis Buuel in the framework of the 40th anniversary of his death”.
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