New beaked dinosaur species is related to the tiny Triceratops

A team of paleontologists has discovered a new species of beaked dinosaur in Japan.

The newly identified species, called Sasayamagnus saegusaiis a close relative of the famous Triceratops, but according to researchers it differs significantly in size and characteristics.

Fossils of the dinosaur were found in the city of Tambasasayama in Japan's Hyogo Prefecture, according to a study published in the journal Contributions to paleontology reports.

The find included 17 bones, which scientists believe belong to a young specimen of this species.

In contrast to the larger, more well-known Triceratops, which could grow up to 9 meters long, Sasaya Gnome was of petite stature, less than 3 feet long, and probably weighed only about 22 pounds.

The name of the new species is derived from the Sasayama region where the fossil was excavated and is also a tribute to the late Haruo Saegusa, who contributed to paleontological research in Japan.

The species is part of a group of herbivorous dinosaurs known as ceratopsians, of which Triceratops is perhaps the most famous.

Ceratopsians, known for their beaks and elaborate head ornaments, including large horns and frills, lived in the Northern Hemisphere from the Late Jurassic (about 161 to 145 million years ago) to the Cretaceous (about 145 to 66 million years ago). But the new species has “unique” features that are different from all known ceratopsians. Unlike Triceratops and other later relatives, Sasaya Gnome For example, large horns and ruffles were missing.

Sasaya Gnome represents the earlier evolutionary stages of ceratopsians in Asia and is closely related to primitive members of the group from North America.

The discovery supports the idea that ceratopsians, which apparently originated in Asia, may have migrated to North America across the Bering land bridge in the Mid-Cretaceous period about 110 million years ago.

During this time, the eastern part of the Eurasian continent and the western part of North America were connected by the land bridge, allowing animals to migrate between the two.

During this period, there was significant global warming, which resulted in the growth of huge forests in the Arctic and may also have favored the spread of ceratopsians from Asia to North America.

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References

Tanaka, T., Chiba, K., Ikeda, T., & Ryan, MJ (2024). A new neoceratopsian (Ornithischia, Ceratopsia) from the Lower Cretaceous Ohyamashimo Formation (Albian), southwestern Japan. Contributions to paleontology10(5).