The discovery of an apex predator dinosaur measuring three storeys from snout to tail and decimating its prey with sharp, curved claws has been disclosed by Argentinian paleontologists.
The six-tonne megaraptor, which is the largest megaraptor ever discovered, ate smaller dinosaurs that it ripped apart with its talons before burrowing into their innards, according to paleontologist Mauro Aranciaga.
[caption id="attachment_36041" align="alignnone" width="755"]
Imagine a three-storey building on its side and you have the approximate length of Argentina’s Maip macrothorax from nose to tail, as seen here in an illustration by Agustín Ozán.[/caption]
According to Dr. Aranciaga, it would have been the "apex predator" of its day, deserving of the terrifying scientific name Maip macrothorax. The first section, "Maip," is named after an "evil" mythological figure of the indigenous Aonikenk people of Patagonia.
According to a study published in the Nature journal Scientific Reports, the character was associated with "the shadow of death," which "kills with chilly wind" in the Andes mountains. The second element, "macrothorax," refers to the creature's massive chest cavity, which is 1.2 meters wide.
According to Dr. Aranciaga's team, the newly discovered monster was nine to ten meters long, greater than any previously discovered type of megaraptor – a group of flesh-eating monsters that once inhabited what is now South America.
It lived some 70 million years ago, near the end of the Cretaceous period, in a tropical forest that existed long before the Andes mountain range and glaciers that now define Patagonia.
Each talon of the killer reptile was 40cm long and had two sharp, curled claws per front paw. On his first-ever professional journey three years ago to Argentina's Santa Cruz province, Dr. Aranciaga, 29, had the good fortune of discovering the first piece of Maip.
This necessitated months of diligent digging, cleaning, and classification of a massive hoard of bones, including vertebrae, rib, hip, tail, and arm fragments. "It was a big excitement when I lifted the vertebra and discovered that it possessed the traits of a megaraptor," Dr. Aranciaga stated. "I found a new fossil and it turned out to be a megaraptor, which is the group in which I specialize," says the researcher.
According to Fernando Novas of the Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences' Laboratory of Comparative Anatomy, Maip was one of the last megaraptors to live on Earth before the dinosaurs became extinct some 66 million years ago.
Mr Aranciaga, a doctorate fellow at Argentina's National Scientific and Technical Research Council, noted that it is also the southernmost megaraptor yet discovered.
According to Aranciaga's research, the newly identified monster was nine to ten meters long, greater than any previously documented type of megaraptor — a group of flesh-eating monsters that once inhabited what is now South America.
[caption id="attachment_36042" align="alignnone" width="740"]
Argentine palaeontologists Dr Mauro Aranciaga, left, and Dr Fernando Novas, who announced the discovery of an apex predator dinosaur that ripped into its prey with sharp, curved claws.[/caption]
It lived some 70 million years ago, near the end of the Cretaceous period, in a tropical forest that existed long before the Andes mountain range and glaciers that now define Patagonia.
Estancia La Anita, where the reptile was discovered, was a vastly different place 70 million years ago. "There were aquatic and terrestrial snails, plants of various affiliations, puddles, lakes, streams, and numerous species such as frogs, turtles, fish, small birds, and mammals," the researchers said in a statement.
The area now resembles a "cinematic dreamscape," according to the paleontologists.
It lived some 70 million years ago, near the end of the Cretaceous period, in a tropical forest that existed long before the Andes mountain range and glaciers that now define Patagonia.
Estancia La Anita, where the reptile was discovered, was a vastly different place 70 million years ago. "There were aquatic and terrestrial snails, plants of various affiliations, puddles, lakes, streams, and numerous species such as frogs, turtles, fish, small birds, and mammals," the researchers said in a statement.
The area now resembles a "cinematic dreamscape," according to the paleontologists.
"Today, it is a place surrounded by massive mountains, glaciers, and lakes," Aranciaga said in a statement. "We must trek for many hours in terrible weather conditions." "It's a site with an incredible vista today, a panorama worthy of a Lord of the Rings film."
Each talon of the killer reptile was 40 centimeters long and had two sharp, curled claws per front paw.
On his first-ever professional journey three years ago to Argentina's Santa Cruz province, Aranciaga, now 29, had the good fortune of discovering the first piece of Maip.
This necessitated months of diligent digging, cleaning, and classification of a massive hoard of bones, including vertebrae, rib, hip, tail, and arm fragments.
"It was a big excitement when I lifted the vertebra and found that it possessed the traits of a megaraptor," Aranciaga said.
"It was like a boyhood dream come true... discovering a new fossil and it turning out to be a megaraptor, which is my specialty," he told reporters.
According to Fernando Novas of the Argentine Museum of Natural Sciences' Laboratory of Comparative Anatomy, Maip was one of the last megaraptors to live on Earth before the dinosaurs became extinct some 66 million years ago.
Other significant paleontological finds have been made in Patagonia. A herbivorous dinosaur with a row of spines running along its back that lived 140 million years ago was discovered in the territory in 2019.
In 2014, scientists revealed the discovery of a previously undiscovered, gigantic dinosaur species that was one of the largest terrestrial mammals ever discovered.
