New species of ‘heavyweight’ dinosaur discovered in the Eastern Cape [pics]

Nyana rooiwalensis, a new dinosaur species recently unearthed in South Africa was already a heavyweight, despite being only a youngster when it died more than 200 million years ago.

The prehistoric creature is estimated to have weighed around 400kg. However, scientists believe it could have grown to several tonnes as an adult.

The discovery was made from a near-complete skull and several other fossilised bones. The remains were collected in 2018 on the outskirts of Qhemegha village in the Eastern Cape.

The findings were published this week in the journal Royal Society Open Science.

“The holotype and only specimen includes the first almost complete and articulated dinosaur skull from the South African Late Triassic and is one of only a handful of such skulls from this time in the southern continents,” scientists wrote in the research paper.

Nyana was still growing when it died

Nyana rooiwalensis belonged to a group called sauropodomorphs. These early dinosaurs eventually gave rise to enormous, long-necked species such as Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus.

Led by Atashni Moopen at Wits University, researchers used powerful X-rays to create a detailed 3D model of the skull.

They then compared its features with those of other dinosaurs to establish where it belonged on the evolutionary family tree.

Microscopic examination of thin slices of its limb bones also provided clues about its age.

The findings showed that Nyana was still growing rapidly when it died. Despite its considerable size, it was believed to be at least in its third year of growth.

Scientists estimated its weight using measurements of its thigh bone and growth patterns in related dinosaurs.

“Extrapolation of these growth curves suggests that adult Nyana may have reached multi-tonne body masses,” the researchers wrote.

Eastern Cape behemoth could shed light on evolution

The fossils were recovered from the lower Elliot Formation, which records a 30-million-year period spanning the Late Triassic and Early Jurassic periods.

The Eastern Cape discovery is particularly significant because well-preserved skulls from early sauropodomorphs are relatively rare. This is especially true of fossils found in Southern Africa.

Researchers also believe the discovery could help explain how early dinosaurs evolved and spread across the world.

“It provides critical new data on skull morphology in early-diverging massopodans,” the study authors noted.

They also suggested that the findings point to a previously unrecognised biogeographical link between southern Africa and North America.