Even the skies have been occupied – extensive-winged traveling pterosaurs swooped overhead, often diving down to grab a delicious fish out on the river.
Named after the region of Niger, where its fossils had been initially uncovered. The name was chosen to mirror its origins, on the other hand, the similarity in pronunciation to a racial slur has raised issues about cultural sensitivity and ideal terminology.
Nigersaurus was named and explained in more detail by Sereno and colleagues only in 1999, dependant on stays of recently identified people. A similar short article also named Jobaria, Yet another sauropod from Niger. The genus name Nigersaurus ("Niger reptile") is usually a reference to your region exactly where it absolutely was uncovered, and the particular name taqueti honours Taquet, who was the primary to organise large-scale palaeontological expeditions to Niger.
Nigersaurus also bears indications of small-angle tooth-to-tooth use on The within in the maxillary crowns, which implies that jaw motion was limited to precise up-and-down motions. Worn teeth with the lower jaw have not still been learned, but They're envisioned to indicate opposing tooth-to-tooth wear. The opportunity to elevate their heads effectively above the bottom isn't going to necessarily suggest they browsed on products there, plus the brief neck of Nigersaurus would have restricted the browsing assortment in comparison with other diplodocoids.[three]
It was discovered while in the rich fossil vertebrate fauna in the Elrhaz Development in a place identified as Gadoufaoua, inside the Republic of Niger. Fossils of this dinosaur ended up first described in 1976, but it absolutely was only named in 1999 immediately after more full continues to be were discovered and described.
lived in what is now Niger about a hundred and fifteen to one zero five million several years ago, through the Aptian and Albian ages on the mid-Cretaceous. It very likely lived in habitats dominated by inland floodplains (a riparian zone).
The Nigersaurus, with its 500 teeth, showcases the marvels of evolution. Its specialised dental anatomy, tailor-made to its atmosphere and diet regime, serves being a testomony on the adaptability and variety of prehistoric life.
Its skull was extremely specialised for feeding. It had four significant side fenestrae, openings inside the skull and slim bones. It experienced a broad muzzle stuffed with much more than five hundred teeth, which ended up changed all around each and every fourteen days. The jaws might have had what dinosaur has 500 teeth a keratinous sheath, one thing just like a vast beak. Nigersaurus is the only real recognised tetrapod animal to acquire experienced jaws wider compared to the skull and teeth that prolonged laterally throughout the front.
The reconstructed skeleton of an incredibly Odd dinosaur, the plant-consuming Nigersaurus. This is a sculptural rendition of what the researchers expect the dinosaur's unique head could have appeared like.
It had close to five hundred thin teeth in its jaw that were changed with new teeth in 2 months. Its higher jaw teeth had been larger sized than its reduced jaw teeth. Furthermore, Its jaw was much broader compared to the cranium.
The extensive muzzle of Nigersaurus was probably an adaptation to its small-lying herbivorous eating plan, letting it to easily scoop up and Obtain plant substance from the ground.
This Nigersaurus was a hatchling, likely lower than a person yr from hatching when it died and was fossilized.
Diplodocus skull for comparison Its cranium was incredibly distinctive from Diplodocus, suggesting a different feeding approach. It had quite a few fenestrae (openings) and slender bones. It had a wide muzzle full of much more than 500 teeth.
In 2017, the Argentinian palaeontologist Lucio M. Ibiricu and colleagues examined the postcranial skeletal pneumaticity during the skeletons of rebbachisaurids, and instructed that it absolutely was an adaptation for lowering the density from the skeleton, and that this might have diminished the muscle mass Power necessary to transfer the body, in addition to the heat created in the method.