A 250-million-year-old embryonated Lystraaurus fossil discovered in South Africa's Karoo Basin provides the first direct evidence that mammal ancestors laid eggs, resolving a long-standing mystery about the origins of mammalian reproduction. Lystraaurus, an ostrich-like dinosaur that lived during the Permian and Triassic periods, was a large herbivorous vertebrate (1.8-2.4 meters long, 80-100 pounds) with tusks but no chewing teeth. The fossil, confirmed through high-resolution CT and synchrotron scanning, revealed that Lystraaurus had soft-shelled eggs and likely produced precocial hatchlings capable of feeding themselves. This discovery, made by Professor Julianne Benoit and colleagues at the University of the Witwatersrand, also provides evidence that Lystraaurus had fur and likely hibernated, helping explain how these animals survived the Permian mass extinction.
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Ostrich-Like Dinosaur Fossil Found... Animal & Dinosaur News From Around The World!!!Added:
live daily news. For those of you that don't know, my name is Ethan. Today we are going over a new ornitham discovery as or an ostrich-like dinosaur as well as a new protomamal discovery and as well as what's going on with red deer over in Ireland and as well a prehistoric or ice age discovery over in New Mexico as well as uh what seems to be going on with cougars over in Vancouver Island. So, uh, let's start off back in time, possibly during the perian or the triacic period. This definitely seems to be a very wellpreserved embryo of a proto mammal.
Seems to be some species of dicinodon.
Very well preserved. Um, not the first species of orum specimen of a What happened?
Okay.
not the first embryo to or um egg to be discovered. So from this >> not the first dissonant egg.
>> No. Uh there actually have been other dicodont eggs coming in from I believe South Africa from the late perian to early triacic somewhere between 248 and 252 million years ago.
So 250 milliony old embryioned uh embryionated dicinodon egg found in South Africa. So it is here once again.
Using high resolution CT and synretron um scanning paleontologists confirmed that the fossilized specimen from the early triacic of the South African Karu basin contains an unborn Dicidon Lystraaurus resolving a longstanding mystery about whether early mammal ancestors laid eggs. The researchers suggest that Dicinodon eggs were likely soft shelled explaining why they have remained elusive for so long.
Interesting. I didn't know that they were soft shelled. I mean, it's quite it's almost like something due to their diet and um maybe also due to the atmospheric or the environmental conditions, but there must have been some sort of robust layer because otherwise um the eggs would easily break. If I think in terms of soft, it's not necessarily that they're they can easily break, but something to do with the um calcified layer. I don't know what specifically.
This looks really well preserved, especially like the head. The whole body is nearly intact.
So Lystraaurus represents a major group of primarily herbivorous vertebrates that were common during the perian and triacic periods. The ancient creature was between 1.8 and 2.4 m or 6 to 8 ft in length. That is a huge Lystraaurus.
Um it's possible maybe with the 6'8. I'm not sure about that. that um Lystasaurus existed over in Antarctica, a South Africa around um 252 million years ago or even >> Did you say Antarctica?
>> Yes. This was back when Antarctica was connected to Africa um on pangia during the early triacic as well as the late Peran period. So, um, you could easily have animals travel back and forth and at the time, well, okay, here's the interesting thing actually. Let's look up Lisaurus first. Um, is that at the time, well, okay. Um, L Y S T R O S A U R U S.
um at the time and when it comes to Lystra source due to its overall anatomy and as well the atmosphere the environmental conditions of Antarctica as well as South Africa at the time. It seems that these herbivores might have hibernated to an extent or maybe um have simply gone through a state of broomation, which is what brown bears um female polar bears and their young American black bears um go through during the late fall, winter, and early spring months.
>> Or here's a weird one.
Um, yeah, I think this one's a bit skinny and has a bit too much of a um it's its feet do resemble other lineages of proto mammals or um other species of diapsids. However, um actually not diapsids. I believe this is a um another lineage of the um diconaut lineage of proto mammals. So um but what I'm saying is that I think the toes are a bit too thin. I think there should be more width. I think the skull looks relatively good. I think the tusk should be more robust or a bit wider. They seem a bit too thin. uh the tusks or the canines as you would say probably would be or fit better for certain other um species of carnivorous protomamals at the end of the perian like different species of smaller gorgonopsians but Lystraasaurus probably weighed some around 80 to maybe 100 pounds or a little over 40 kg.
Oh yeah, this is a really good picture.
Yeah. over in a mountainous landscape in Antarctica or South Africa. Um, these animals, >> Antarctica, >> yeah, they're quite common in different fossil formations over in Antarctica as well as South Africa. Actually, they're probably the most common protomamal to be discovered. They would, their lineage would continue into the corresponding triacic period or the the upcoming triacic period. Um considering it does look like Lystraaur survived the Perian mass extinction and um when it comes to the Dicodon lineage itself, it would extend up until the very end of the triacic period around 203 million years ago. So they would still live on for another 48 million years.
Oh yeah, this is a really good showcase.
Oh yeah, and I like the feet. They're a lot better here.
um of how they're supposed to be replicating. I guess two males um fighting for breeding rights or possibly even for um um grazing or browsing rights as well, but likely for females. It's very possible that they did experience wet and dry seasons at the time, too. But it they were living in a bit of a cooler climate. There is also evidence for this protomamal or this Lystra source to have had fur. So we have found hair follicles on different specimens of preserved skin of um Lystraaurus.
So um there weren't any dinosaurs at this point yet. The dinosaurs would not evolve for at least another 10 to 15 million years.
Um, see. So, let's head back to the article. I do also like the um canine structure in this instance. It looks a lot better. And I like how it just has a bit more of like a sort of stubby graceful sort of um locomotion.
So, um it had no teeth but bore a pair of tusks in the upper jaw. technically tus are teeth, but when we're referring to um teeth that would allow them to chew their food, that is true.
So, Lystraaurus fossils are known from China, Europe, India, South Africa, and Antarctica. That is true. They're just much more common in South Africa, and Antarctica. Literally, in certain fossil formations over in South Africa, you can't help but step on Lystaurus fossils. They're so well there's so many and they're so well preserved. It also kind of shows that lyosaurus was one of the most successful species of protomammals to exist at the end of the perier as well as the beginning of the triacic period.
And this geographic distribution was one of the earliest pieces of evidence used in support of the large superc continent pangia. For over 150 years of South African paleontology, no fossil had ever been conclusively identified as a theorapsid egg. That was the family I was trying to get in my head that their absence said university of the wit watts witwaters runs professor Julianne Benoit this is the first time we can say with confidence that mammal ancestors like Listaurus laid eggs making it a true milestone in the field uh that's weird because I swear that there are well I guess because we found an embryo but we do have evidence for these animals laying ing eggs. They would continue to lay eggs into the triacic period as well as with the true mammals. But once the Jurassic hits, so after 200 million years ago, I believe somewhere between 170 and 200 million years ago did different species of early mammals in the Jurassic period um end up giving live birth.
So using advanced imaging, professor Benoy and colleagues examined three perennasurus specimens found in the Karu Basin, South Africa. The Kuru Basin is where many specimens of Lyosaurus as well as different species of organopsians. Um other carnivorous protomamals in the region have been discovered. Even certain species of large tendospondal amphibians.
So, one of the specimens displayed a tightly curled posture suggesting it was still inside an egg and completely lacked tusks. This is interesting. So, this confirms that or at least it looks like Lystasaurus when it was first developed did not score tusks, which makes sense. I mean, um, when you look at different species of animals today that score tusks when they're adults, such as elephants, they do not have tusks when they're first born.
Yeah, that could be quite painful for their mothers.
>> Yeah, I would be very concerned. Um I'm trying to think though. There are certain I swear there's certain um young mammals that have do have somewhat spiky appendages when they're first born.
Maybe I'm thinking it's not hitting me at the moment. So, let's see. Uh understanding reproduction in mammal ancestors has been a longlasting enigma and this fossil provides a key piece to this puzzle.
said Dr. Vincent Fernandez, a researcher at the ESRF, the European Sincotrin.
So, um, let's also look up another um species back in the late perian or the early triacic if this is him.
Cryostga.
So, uh, K R Y O S T E G A.
This is a or the animal that um or the amphibian that I'm referring to. This teen spondle lived over in different parts of I believe South America, Africa, and Antarctica during or on panchia during the early triacic period.
So around 249 million years ago.
>> Sometimes I feel like you're expecting me to be able to spell that.
>> Did it come up? Oh. Um so also this is a um not necessarily a huge species. I believe it reached somewhere around 8 to 12 feet in length which well for actually a wide variety of tendispondal amphibians. This is a larger species, just not the largest, and could weigh some around 4 to 500 lb or a little over 200 kg. And um or I guess in terms of length around 4 m or almost, probably around 3.8 m.
It was feeding on different species of protomamals, probably occasionally, definitely other species of amphibians as well as fish. So, it was a semi-aquatic organism. It did have to come to land occasionally to rest, but um for the most part it does seem to be carnivorous. And what is interesting is that it looks like with cryosta is that this species of tenis bond had an extra layer of teeth in the upper jaw which is similar to different species of mosasaur marine reptiles during the lake cretaceous. So it is quite interesting many species of marine reptiles or groups in general did not score this type of a dental structure and the same case would be for many species of amphibians even teenosponals but for some very fascinating reason that we don't know of cryosta developed that second layer um so you could say this was essentially almost like a small alligator to um the early triacic So this this animal did exist before different species of crocodilomorphs as well as many species of arosaurs would evolve into the triacic around 235 to 245 million years ago. So uh let's head back to the article.
I do think those were great models.
So un uh it was essential that we scanned the fossil just right to capture the level of detail needed to resolve such tiny delicate bones. When I saw the incomplete mandibular symphysis, I was genuinely excited.
Um yeah, I mean I would be quite thrilled as well. I mean we've never found this type of an embryo before. Um, even though eggs from Lystasaurus are not necessarily unheard of, this is I mean this this is rare for most prehistoric species, even when it comes to different species of dinosaurs like the hydrosaurs, ovaptoids, but they wouldn't evolve until the Cretaceous um at least the ovaptors around 135 to 140 million years ago.
The mandible, so the lower jaw is made up of two halves. It must fuse before the animal can feed. The fact that this fusion had not yet occurred shows that the individual would have been incapable of feeding itself.
Wow. So, oh, I think um was this from something else that they found that it looks like Lyra might have suckled its young. So this is evidence to um an extent that um or possible evidence that before the triacic period protomamals were already producing milk unless I'm confusing that with another later protomamal species.
>> Wait, didn't you say though they did it differently?
Well, it's very possible that they oozed milk out of um certain glands much like akidnas and platypuses do today in Australia. They're also a kidna species over in um Papa New Guinea as well in the adjacent islands. According to the team, Lyosaurus laid relatively large eggs for its body size. In modern animals, larger eggs typically contain more yolk, providing all the nutrients an embryo needs to develop independently. without parental feeding after hatching. This strongly suggests that Lichasaurus did not produce milk for its young, unlike modern mammals.
Large eggs also offer Oh, okay. So, yeah, I'm probably mixing it up for another species.
Large eggs also offer another crucial advantage. They're they are more resistant to drying out.
Yeah, but um Lystaurus apparently has like a softer texture when it comes to the eggs. So the question is how does that help with um like drier conditions?
>> I have a question cuz I always forget this. How many of these type of things were there?
>> The dicinons in general believe we've found well over 40 different species um from the perian and the triacic grid.
They seem to have evolved towards the very end of the perians, somewhere between 255 to 260 million years ago.
Why do they always make it out like there's been one?
>> I think that's the case for many different lineages of protomamals as well as um even certain lineages of dinosaurs, prehistoric mammals as well.
They just show specific larger species, but technically the most famous species likely being Placerius, but it wouldn't evolve until the Triacic around 220 million years ago.
over in Arizona, New Mexico, Texas only weighed some around 2200 lb or a little over 1,000 kg.
Um there were a larger species that could weigh probably around 4 tons.
Uh so where were we? So in the harsh droughtprone environment following the extinction, this would have been a critical survival trait. The findings further suggest that Lystraaurus hatchlings were likely um precocial born at an advanced stage of development. These young animals would have been capable of feeding themselves, escaping predators, and reaching reproductive maturity quickly. Oh, so what did I mix up with earlier?
Oh, was it that I confused the um it was a premature embryo and it wouldn't have been capable of well really living at that point.
Okay, so my mistake on that. So the discovery not only provides the first evidence direct evidence of egg laying in mammal ancestors but also offers a powerful explanation for how Lystra came to dominate post extinction ecosystems.
This research is important because it provides the first direct evidence that mammal ancestors such as Lystraaurus laid eggs, resolving a long-standing question about the origins of mamalian reproduction. Beyond this fundamental insight, it reveals how reproductive strategies can shape survival in extreme environments. By producing large yolk richch eggs and precocial young, Lystra was able to thrive in the harsh unpredictable conditions following the N peran mass extinction.
Well, I mean, it's good to see that we found this premature embryo. Say it's unfortunate that it died, but it's good to or it's just nice that um we have it in the fossil record. Okay. Well, let's head forward in time.
So, from the Irish Examiner, they're out of control at epidemic levels. wild deer causing daily accidents and carry counselors told. Uh well, what's interesting is that when it comes to native deer, specifically the red deer over in Ireland, road deer not native to the island. Um there are very few of them. Like they're endangered.
Technically, there's only about maybe 1500 red deer in Ireland. Um now, because they drink too much when they're there and they get hit by cars. Um yeah.
Or they decide to challenge the cars.
But um what is it? Oh, there are however tens of thousands of invasive seca deer on um in Ireland. Like somewhere between 30 to 35,000 invasive seeer. That's a big problem. I wonder if that's what they're referring to despite this picture of red deer. Seems to be a very healthy bull or stag. Deer have been causing numerous collisions all over the county with some insurance companies refusing to cover damage to cars Kerry County Council heard. When is that? Uh yeah, that's uh not one square inch of Kani National Park near major roads has been fenced off by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
Okay, it's fine. What's wrong with this?
Oh, it's a uh fawn.
Yeah, I mean uh these three look healthy.
He's he's definitely going through the rut. Look how um just overall dense and thick his neck is.
Uh wild deer me numbers are so out of control in Karna that animals are being found on roads 40 kilometers from the national park. It has been claimed. Um, I mean that's fine. I I'm trying to think. What is that?
Somewhere around 15 miles. 15 20 m. Not one square inch. I already said that.
Uh, accidents are now occurring daily with cars being written off. It was claimed at the meeting in Trolley. It has been seven years since Kani Municipal District representatives met family members connected to a fatal accident linked to deer on the N72 near FS. Independent counselor Brendan Cronin told the full meeting of Kerry County Council.
Question is I've these have got to be the seeader causing this. Various bodies including Transport Infrastructure Ireland, the council, the NPWS, as well as Larnodon were approached to take action, but no part of the park's been fenced to keep the deer in. I mean, they're supposed to be free roaming. Are they just causing that much of an issue? Well, here here's the thing. When it comes to seek a deer, shoot, spear, bow and arrow, or archery, I don't care. take all of them out and eat them. Um, so the only action had been the erection of a single solar powered sign on the N72 warning of deer.
Iron rod iron erected fencing and took real action to protect the railways and passengers. Mr. Cronin said no one knows how many thousands of see red are wandering the roads. Can't be that many red. But the Sika, yeah, those um invading um Japanese deer, well, Asian, East Asian deer technically, they are out of control at EP epidemic levels.
It's no longer one national route near Karna.
Counselors from across the county told of road incidents with deer crossing and jumping on cars. Insurance companies have been reluctant and in some cases refused to provide compensation, it was claimed.
>> What's new there?
>> Yep. Uh, Lystoell counselor Michael Leen. Um, also let's bring up a sika deer said two of his constituents had a runin with deer. Oh, s i k a um had a run in with deer on roads. In one incident, a young woman's car had been written off with the insurance company refusing to cover the damage.
Gary County Council is in the process of carrying out a pilot scheme. Oh yeah, there he is. This is a really good looking uh stag, I'll say. Um they reach somewhere around 600 lb or a little over 280 kg.
>> I could see how it could take out a car, especially a car in Europe that weighs 500 lb.
>> Uh oh, yeah, that um Russell Crow car.
Um yeah, that um anyway, it's still a good-looking animal, but yeah, they should not be anywhere in Europe. Ballow deer technically should not be in Ireland as well. I forgot how many there are over on the island, but they were introduced there by um the ancient Italians.
Okay, so let's see. Um where were we? So the scheme involves installing virtual fence technology on two 1 kilometer stretches of roadway to investigate the reduction in deer collisions after the installation of the system. Virtual.
Uh, oh, I'm thinking digital. The pilot schemes will be rolled out in the coming months and the areas will be monitored through a UCCC research program.
Meanwhile, just under 400 deer were called in Kani National Park in 2025.
Uh, well, the question is what species?
If that's of the red deer, that is really bad. It doesn't say which one.
Um, if that's of the sea deer, that's of no help. The majority of wild deer taken out in the two 10,000 hectare park. Geh, what is that? 20,000 acres. Oh. Oh, I guess we're for a national park in Ireland. That's huge.
And Kane worthy introduced Sika should be all of them, but also the much larger native Kani red deer. I really unless it's got a certain disease or a massive physical problem, you know, that makes sense.
Um, anything else?
Or let's say it's wreaking havoc on somebody's farm. I understand, but um, yeah, outside of that, you shouldn't be taking out the National Park Service here should not be taking out the native red deer. But yeah, the Sika take all of them out. Have the um the native Irish take them out.
Okay. So, uh, heading back in time from Suz. Rare ostrich-like dinosaur fossil found on Canadian island.
Paleontologists. Uh, by the way, this is like shocking considering um, western British Columbia, Canada is not known for, which is where I'm guessing this is taking place.
Um, it's not known for many species of dinosaurs, especially ornithmans.
Paleontologists in Canada say they have recovered a dinosaur tail vertebra from 75 to 80 million year old marine rocks on a small island off the coast of British Columbia. They haven't said Vancouver Island, so this is interesting. Providing the clearest evidence yet that bird-like ornithamosaurs once roamed the ancient Pacific coastline of North America.
Well, it definitely makes sense. I think it's just we're more familiar with them over in Alberta. So, u this is still fascinating to see. This is also a really good picture. It looks very much like an ornithmus.
Um there were a wide range of different species of ornithamids during the Cretaceous period. First evolving around 140 million years ago and then going extinct at the very end of the age of the dinosaurs or the Mesazoic era around 66 million years ago.
So, I wonder if it's one of those 18 foot long individuals or around 5 meters.
>> His face looks more like an emu to me.
Not quite, but I don't know why it doesn't somewhat. I guess you could say certain domestic ducks with like a downward um beak or bill structure. The ornithamids were also toothless. Now, when referring to ornithamosaurs, that refers to the whole group of the ornithmids. There are different ornithamid subfamilies that are distantly related to each other, but they're all ornithamosaurs.
So, they were a group of fast running bird-like theropod dinosaurs that lived during the Cretaceous period. Uh, let's see. Long legs, long neck, slender bodies. This one has a very slender um body, almost a bit skinnier than like Galamimus ornithamus, which you could say is not necessarily surprising, but it's a bit more so compared to the to the other species, at least based on um the drawing. Toothless beaks, Mman did not have teeth and relatively small heads, giving them a strong resemblance to modern ostriches. I will say that the ostrich has a very round um circular skull structure and quite a thin um bill structure whereas ornithmus had quite robust beaks or mouths um or at least jaws in general.
Some species such as galamus and ornithmus probably the two most famous species of ornithmus with probably stromimus not far behind. Scarthimus did exist over in Alberta, Canada, possibly British Columbia around 74 million years ago. Orthomimus was around 75 million years ago over in Canada. So could grow more than 4 m or 13 ft long. That's about galaminus size, maybe slightly longer. Ornithmus um could reach larger sizes or at least lengths.
Despite being theropods, one of the Mammosaurs are thought to have been omnivores or opportunistic feeders eating plants, small animals, and possibly eggs.
Um, yeah, it is interesting when they're um reconstructed. I think it was shown on certain 1980s '7s depictions of ornithamids being egg raiders, almost like the ovaparids.
But it's a huge mystery as to what these animals would have been feeding on. I do believe however there have been certain um preserved remains of ornithamids with gastrolids or stones inside the rib cage area.
Um they also might have been seed eaters to an extent but it's very likely that they were overall omnivorous.
So they were likely among the fastest dinosaurs of their time with some estimates placing their top speed at around 50 to 60 km an hour or 31 to 37 mph. Um, I've seen faster speeds like maybe around 45, but maybe that's a little exaggerated, but it might vary depending on the species.
They had to be considering there were different species of quite nimble tyrannosaurs as well as derosaur species that would have hunted them at the time.
In their new paper, Dr. David Evans, a paleontologist at the University of Toronto and the Royal Ontario Museum, and his colleagues described a fossilized vertebrae from the tale of an orthaminosaur.
The fossil dates back to the companion age of Lake Cretaceous between 80 and 75 million years ago. So, it seems to be a bit of an older species of ornithmid compared to ornithamus at least or strthomus. The specimen was collected in August 1999 from marine sediments of the Cedar District Formation on Denm Island, part of the Nammo Group of Western Canada.
Okay. Um, let's bring up a larger species of dinosaur that possibly coexisted with it. The um, Centraurus.
So, C E N T R O.
So um there were different species of horn dinosaurs or sereratopsians that coexisted with the ornithomimids back in the lake cretaceous of Canada and there were also different species of enkyosaurs and notasaurs as well um as well as the different species of duck bills or hydrosaurs. Now centaurus is slightly older depiction but it's not bad. There could be a bit more um overall flesh or muscle added to the core of the body. Centrasaurus is an interesting um species of sereratopsian first. It's actually there's an older one.
>> Oh yeah, this one. This must be like 1960s.
It could be 70s, but that would be pushing it. Uh though there have been always different odd depictions of centaurus. This centaur is a bit of a um elongated frill compared to its overall body size.
Now, maybe I could refer to a certain other subspecies, but usually with this much of a difference, it's its own distinct species. Like in its overall morphology, uh, but also the um h that horn, it's almost as long as like a styraosaur horn to an extent. Um, I mean, I like the overall drawing. There's one acting like a dog. Oh yeah, this guy. Um, yeah, this this entrasaurus is still I mean I mean I think it's a good depiction, but terms of uh realisticness, it's quite off. Now, the sereratopsians likely could have reared up on their hind legs to occasionally probably help them in fights to an extent, but this would be quite risky if you have a massive horn in front of you. Um, considering there is not any armor on their underbelly or their neck and there wouldn't have been for even the armored enchyosaurs, but they likely didn't rear up on their hind legs. But likely they simply did this to reach up further into the trees when they decided to feed on certain species of genkos or connifers. Okay, what's wrong with this guy? Seem to be more of low browsers, even you could say fern or flower grazers to an extent. Hold on.
Uh, this could be a centrosaurus.
>> What's wrong with that horn?
>> Maybe something changed in recent um, >> you got a fungus.
>> Yeah, that's a very powerful fungus. Um, maybe he obtained Well, what I'm trying to say is that maybe there were certain fossils that popped up recently with a longer um, slightly curved horn. Now, the curved horn is known in centsaurus remains. They're also one of the most common species of sereratopsian to be discovered over in Alberta, Canada. And they lived in the region around 76 million years ago, coexisting with different species of tyrannosaurs like Albertaurus.
This animal was somewhere around 18 to 20 ft in length or pushing about 6 m and probably weighed around 2 tons. likely existing in herds of at least 80 individuals, probably more and coexisting with different species of hydrosaurs like the parasaurolophus.
But um what's the other thing? Oh, so yes, it does belong to a separate lineage of sereratopsians, separate from triceratops.
This is a member of the centaur lineage, whereas triceratops is a member of the kasmosaurus. But I think this is along with that last depiction um probably one of the more accurate depictions despite this looking like a 1990s or early 2000s picture. Okay, let's head back to the article.
Uh let's see. So the specimen was collected in August 1999 from marine sediments of the Cedar District Formation on Den Man Island.
Interesting. So, this animal possibly died or likely died over amongst the coastline. So, that's interesting. Quite fascinating. And it's nice that nothing was at least it doesn't look like anything was feeding on it cuz you would have had different species of mosasaurs roaming the coast as well, which were the large marine reptiles at that time.
Part of the Nammo group of Western Canada. The fossil is to date only the second reported occurrence of dinosaur skeletal material from the Nammo group and the first from Canadian outcrops.
Wow. Well, that's really good to hear. I wonder what that um distinct first one is because I do recall um certain other specimens um not just from this part of British Columbia, but even other regions, but they tend to be more fragmentaryary than obviously Alberta.
They suggest the ornithamosaur bone may have washed out to sea from the western margin of ancient North America, possibly carried by currents, shoreline transport, or even scavengers. Another possibility is that it came from a floating carcass that drifted offshore before disarticulating.
Um, oh, was just a single bone.
Well, I mean, this is nice to have. That was to be expected. So, it is one of those fragmentaryary remains.
Not too surprising.
>> That means they're having to guess at everything else.
>> Yeah.
H. This is definitely a mysterious um species of one of the very basic term of this group of therapod dinosaurs.
It's truly a big mystery as to who it is or what it could be. So based on current interpretations of the paleolatitude of the Namo Basin, the specimen was probably roughly latitudinally equivalent to outcrops of the two medicine and Judith River formations to the east, part of the northern fondal province of Campanian Laridian dinosaurs along the western interior seaway. To date, remains of ornithamosaurs identifiable to lower taxomic taxonomic levels have not been described from the Judith River and two medicine formations. Okay, so just to uh you remind everybody, these are when referring to the um two medicine and Judith River formations, they're referring to two separate fossil formations over in this part of Canada.
So although a rich ornithamid fauna is known from the dinosaur park formation of Alberta with species in several genre known from complete skeletons.
Um, also the two medicine and Judith River formations like the dinosaur park formation are located over in Alberta and they do um consist of different species of lake cretaceous dinosaurs from slightly different times in the lake cretaceous.
So whether or not Pacific coastal dinosaurs may also have had a latitudinal diversity gradient and whether or not the intervening mountain ranges impacted dinosaur biogeography by promoting alopatric or alopatric diversification in the companion. the companions from somewhere around 74 to 75 million years ago to about 86 million years ago of the Cretaceous are questions that can only be answered with additional fossil discoveries.
Well, considering yeah, this was extremely fragmentaryary.
Yes. So, this horn of the big mystery.
>> Okay. Well, uh >> basically they got one bone and said, "Oh, here's what we got." Well, whatever leg bone it is, um I don't recall. I'm not sure if they said it was like a femur bone, which would be the thigh bone, shin bone, or um >> they got a toe, >> like the ankle.
Um Oh, I was kidding.
>> Yeah. Well, unfortunately, they didn't along with it. It' be really nice if they got part of the head. Okay. Uh let's head forward in time to another part of the world.
Okay. So, well, or not. Um, slightly adjacent to the area from brobible.com.
British Columbia campers startled by enormous mountain lions scoping them out in the dark.
So, uh, British Columbia, Canada is home to the highest concentration of mountain lions in North America. This is very true, especially Vancouver Island. And campers throughout the region are advised to be vigilant and exercise caution when out in the wild. These giant cats are masters of stealth, so it is often impossible to know if they are watching you. Yeah, I think I'd rather have them watching than um I guess certain species of droasaurs, but that sounds fun, too. One group of campers at Harrison Lake in British Columbia, not too far north over the border from the States, were stunned to see an absolutely massive mountain lion lurking in the woods, learing at them in the dark with an ominous, watchful eye.
Okay. So, let's scroll further down.
So, okay. Uh, okay. In two videos, user Calio Pelois on Tik Tok documented their close encounter with the abnormally large mountain lion lurking just on the edge of their campsite as they cooked in the dark underneath a tarpin. First video has raked up over a million views in the first 24 hours since it was shared.
Oh, what happened here?
Is that him?
Whoa. Um, wow. That is a very fluffy u cougar.
He seems to be slightly startled. Looks huge. Yeah, he just seems calm. They are quite robust. And I guess you could say some of the largest cougar cougars across the uh Americas are located over in British Columbia, especially along the coast. They feed on stellar sea lions in this region as well with the sea lions reaching somewhere around 2500 lb or pushing over 1,200 kg.
So um second clip shows curious large cat sniffing around. It's impossible to know for certain why the mountain lion is there, but most likely is the aroma of food wafting through the air which drew in its attention.
Now, they're not feeding on the adult stellar sea lions, but they will go after uh juveniles.
I don't think he's attracted because of the food. I might have just been resting and then happened to just wake up. He's like, "Wait, where'd you guys come from?" But yeah, he is um like certain cougars quite guess tolerant of the people being there. But yeah, he seems quite calm.
I'm guessing it's like a cat.
>> Yeah, they are much more closely related to um house cats, different species of lyns, um like the bobcat, um Eurasian lynx compared to other large cat species such as snow leopards, tigers, and lions.
Uh let's see. Oh, they also are related to the extinct saber-tooth cats, but um they the saber-tooth cats belong to a completely different lineage of cats, the micro um microented.
So, um, many made cat distribution system jokes, but my favorite comment from someone with a handle lobster simply asked. So, what's the next step in this situation?
Okay. Uh, is that it? Seems that way.
Okay. Well, um I'm glad this was a healthy um cougar. Overall, he's definitely wellfed. I think it's a wild one. He seems kind of fudgy. Uh let's head over to another part of the world.
It looks like he's eaten a ton.
>> Yeah. And back in time. It's probably that blubber from the sea lions.
>> What just happened?
>> Not that far back in time.
What? What just happened?
Yes, it's the Ice Age one. There we go.
Um, okay. So, from Santa Fe newex.com, New Mexico fossil fueled um discovery of new species ice age musk ox relative.
Well, if it's a muskox relative, then it's probably a member of the goat family. So, let's take a look.
Considering the muskox are the largest species of goat today.
H wonder what we're looking at.
Seems to be the skull.
Left the skull of spiotherumi.
Interesting. So, yeah, it was definitely in a cave. Seems to be water inside of it.
Um, oh, it's a relative of the taken. I guess we could look up these guys, too.
Um, the taken is a large species of goat. Probably the second largest species of goat that exists over in adjacent mount well um, Himalayan ranges of like Botan, northern uh, northern India and China. Okay. So, um, T A K I N.
>> That was easy.
>> Wait, they still exist?
>> They're endangered. I believe they're like is less than a couple thousand individuals, but they do inhabit different um certain mountain ranges over in northern and central China as well. They can reach somewhere around There we go.
This is another distinct. There's a few different subspecies.
Um, some around 800 pounds or a little over 380 kg.
>> Okay. This guy is laidback.
>> Yeah. They always have this kind of um like I wouldn't say capy bar, but >> that's what it looks like.
>> Who would it be? Like >> they're smiling kind of like a capy bar.
>> Yeah. almost like they're like the quacas or certain um like rock walabes of the um of China like they have never heard of communism or it's because they created it. I'm not sure. Um let's head to the article.
Here we go.
Okay. So, if you grab the ancient muskox by the horns, you might find a new genus and species. A New Mexico fossil has been determined to be a new genus and species of an ice age relative of the muskox. The horns on the skull found among many bones in the aptly named Muskox cave in Carl'sbad Caverns National Park setum logani or Logan's ostral screw box apart.
So the late pleainees fossil record is well known said New Mexico museum of natural history and science paleontology curator Gary Morgan. So the discovery came as a bit of a surprise.
Paleontologists Richard White, Jim me Jim Med and museum paleontology curator Gary Morgan authored a paper on the discovery published recently in the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin. Yeah, the late plea scene even for New Mexico because this makes it this gives it almost like a modern or at least in recent centuries sort of Asian appeal to it. At least since I mentioned the talking, there were different more recognizable um ice age animals existing here over in New Mexico as well as corresponding Texas, Oklahoma, um Nebraska, California such as the Colombian mammoth. In fact, um there have been over 80 different Colombian mammoth individuals. Let's bring up a mammoth bird.
Um did you say a Columbia mammoth herd? Uh well, we can bring up a single like bull um or even a mother with its young, but um herd would be nice as well. Oh, right. Um, these guys, um, I think it's one of those early 2010s models because they're kind of skinny. We could say the Colombia mammoth has a bit more of like a lean sort of physique compared to woolly mammoths considering they contain much less body fat compared to their northern um, ancestors technically because the Colombian mammoth did derive from the step mammoth as well as the woolly mammoth. The step mammoth was slightly larger than the Columbia mammoth, also much furer. So, um even though these are depicted as like larger um Asian elephants, at least in that depiction, they were closely related, but um there is evidence for at least was it Colombia mammoths or mastedons?
Actually, it might have been a Colombian mammoth specimen where two males died in battle. So, uh, that's pretty accurate.
This is also a really good representation of a Colombian mammoth on the grasslands of Pletoine.
Um, well, this is saying Florida. There are specimens of Colombian mammoths as well as giant ground sloths, saber-tooth cats, especially smeladon fatalis over in Pletoine or Ice Age, Florida, as well as certain other areas of the eastern United States. This is also a good representation of a Columbia mammoth over in probably some part of Wyoming. I think judging by the prongghorn. I think there's some bison in the background in the landscape. I think it's like Grand Teton National Park. They likely were there too along with larger species of bison as well. The American bison had not evolved yet. And there's even one there's one right beneath him. Anyway, um guess if he grew up with them, I mean, sure, maybe it's just a buddy, but um the prongghorn uh modern prongghorn probably hadn't evolved yet. There were certain other there have been several different species of ancient ponglorin not just from the pleaene but as well as the um former piocene epoch so from about 3 to 8 million years ago and the former meiosene epoch so pushing as far as 20 million years um let's see where was I guess I'll get to other animals so we didn't expect to find a new animal we were looking at a late pleaene cave and we thought okay everything that's here are going to be animals that have been described before. Logan's oustral screwbox lives in the rankan blank rank labrian North American land mammal age. So it's also uh this is named after the Labraa tarpit site in Los Angeles, California, which has um brought thousands of dire wolf specimens, hundreds of um saber-tooth cat or smeladon fatalis specimens as well as well as different Colombia mammoth fossils, different species ground sloths as well as giant camels and bison in the region and mastedons too. So named after the ranchel labria fossil site in California commonly known as the labria tarpits in the ice age megapona like mammoths saber-tooth cats and ground slots dominated. Um, there have been around five different species of ground sloths that have been found at least over in Texas likely. Uh, well, there have been different localities over in New Mexico as well.
Um, such as paramodon, megalonics. Uh, let's bring up um per maybe the other one. I'll stick to um per mileadon. So, p a r a um m y. Oh, you already popped up. So peromodon was a mediumsized species of ground sloth. There were not >> Did we do him yesterday?
>> No. Last time maybe we were talking about an ice age incident. There were also um creatures like I believe north which was somewhere around 500 lb or u right around 220 kg. Um the paraminon was slightly larger probably pushing around 6 to 700 600 to 750 lbs or right around 300 to 350 kg and they were large herbivores at least especially compared to today's 20 lb sloths or uh weighing around 7 to 8 kg.
But um these animals did walk on all fours and they walked on the sides of their feet as well, which is pretty much what modern day sloths today do as well, but they're less mobile. Um the giant ground slots were fairly quick when it came to simply being maneuverable or being able to make a quick turn. They did not really have the ability to run very much, but they definitely were capable of fighting off the different species of um saber-tooth cats in the region as well as shortfaced bears and um even different packs of dire wolves.
Though possibly direwolves weren't going after sloths certainly was possible for younger individuals. I'm referring to adults. It would be quite risky.
Um, oh yeah, this is definitely a much older uh picture.
Uh, but I still think they look really good. Uh, it could be permodon. It could be aramtherreium considering that large species of ground sloth weighing well over five to six tons existed over in North America.
>> And how big is the bird?
>> Yeah, I believe this is one of the last species of terror in quote terror bird to exist. might be a member of the forest rocky lineage of terror birds, but it's like two feet tall or maybe like point um 6.7 m and might have weighed maybe 15 lbs. It was fairly small, a little over um 6 kg. Colombia mammoths could also reach somewhere around 8 to 9 tons.
So, let's see. In 1976 and 1977, paleontologist Lloyd Logan, the species namesake, found 50 species of pletoine mammals at the cave. Whoa. Wow, that's a lot. I mean, it's good to hear when you found 50 of a certain species.
Um, or maybe a handful and still just a smaller number of each. But that is that's astounding. Now question is how many are like different species of pletoine squirrels pletoine snakes.
Um also in New Mexico we have found evidence I believe for the north north of Bronoi um species of ground slot of fossilized dung intact in the cave.
So reaching the fossils requires rappling down around 100 ft or pushing around 30 m.
But after that little was done to study the fossils.
which were stored at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History for decades, of course. Gesh, hate when that occurs.
>> They don't let you see them.
>> Yeah. And the muskox's relative was misidentified as eucertherium colinum or shrews.
That's unfortunate.
Um, they really just sat in a drawer.
More like 20 drawers. Yeah, that's um it seems to be very typical.
A few years ago, however, Morgan got involved in an inventory of fossils at Cars Bad Caverns and suggested studying the fossils collected from Muskox's Cave in the 1970s. Ian White, who is based in Hot Springs, South Dakota, spent a week at the Smithsonian, then trucked the fossils to South Dakota and Albuquerque.
How many were you able to take, Gary? You know that muskox from Muskox's cave is not what everybody says it is.
Morgan recalled lead author White telling him over the phone. The horns were all wrong, White said. And the specimen was smaller than U Sarahum.
Logan's Ostrol Shrewbox would have stood about 4 feet tall at the shoulder and weighed between 400 and 700 lb. So about the size of today's Himalayan talking.
That's good to hear. Longer horns, it seems. However, the puzzle species started to come together. White was familiar with specimens of a muskoxlike animal found in Mexico and Bise. There have also been certain um mammoth and mastedon fossils discovered in different parts of central actually southern Mexico as well and corresponding bise.
You don't really find any mammoth fossils south of um North America.
Then when you're looking at different species of or at least like the southern mastadon, then you find many different specimens in different countries of South and Central America.
But the skull found in New Mexico was key to distinguish the species. When we had this complete material, this beautiful skull and a bunch of limb bones, most of the skeleton from Muskox's cave, he put two and two together and realized that and his mystery animal from Mexico and Central America were the same thing and they were something totally different. Logan, now retired, contributed a reconstruction drawing to the paper.
He was thrilled to hear that somebody was finally studying the animals of the fossils that he collected. And even more thrilled that we were considering naming this new species in his honor, Morgan said. But it's entirely appropriate this guy did all the work and did all this complicated technical caving to get in there and remove the fossils.
Um I think uh okay. Yeah, him. Yeah, those are much longer horns. also a bit more of a narrow jaw structure compared to the Himalayan tonken, but uh that is quite uh I guess they also gave it a lot of muscle too. The tokins are relatively stocky and so are a lot of the larger goat species. Look at a muskox. It's very stocky but it's also kind of fat because it lives in the Arctic. Um okay well thanks for joining and we are streaming on both Rumble YouTube and kick from prehistoric to present. My name is Ethan. This is Creature Guy Live Daily News.
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