A blog for discussing prehistoric birds, fish, mammals, etc.
Pronunciation: Hel-e-co-pree-on Meaning of name: "Spiral saw". Species: H. bessonowi, H. davisii and H. ergasaminon Size: Uncertain. Size probably varied between species. Family: Agassizodontidae. Diet: Carnivore/piscivore. First fossils found: Known mostly from "tooth whorls" discovered in Russia, Australia, the United States, China, Mexico, Kazakhstan, Norway, Canada, Japan and Laos. H. bessonowi and H. davisii named in 1899. H. ergasaminon named in 1966. Lived: 290.1 to 268.8 million years ago from the Asselian stage of the Early Permian to the Roadian stage of the Middle Permian in warm oceans worldwide.
Pronunciation: Hess-per-or-niss Meaning of name: "Western bird". Species: H. regalis, H. altus, H. bairdi, H. chowi, H. crassipes, H. gracilis, H. macdonaldi, H. mengeli, H. montana, H. rossicus and H. lumgairi. Size: Between 1.2 and 1.8 metres long, 1.5 metres tall and weighing between 4.5 and 9kgs. Family: Hesperornithidae. Diet: Piscivore First fossils found: Known from numerous specimens. First discovered by American palaeontologist, Othniel Charles Marsh, in Kansas in 1871. H. regalis named in 1872. H. crassipes and H. gracilis named in 1876. H. altus named in 1893. H. montana named in 1915. H. rossicus named in 1993. H. bairdi, H. chowi, H. mengeli and H. macdonaldi named in 2002. H. lumgairi named in 2016. Lived: Depending on species, lived from 83.5 to 78 million years ago during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous in what is now Canada, Russia and the midwestern United States.
According to MailOnline Tasmanian Tiger hunter Neil Waters claims he's got photographic proof the marsupial is not extinct - and promises to release photographs of a whole family of thylacines. What do you reckon @taliragreycrest ?
The proper name for this marsupial is the Thylacine. They're only called Tassie tigers due to their striped fur. It would be fantastic if it was proven beyond doubt that these animals are still alive.
Today's animal is, basically, a giant millipede: Arthropleura
Pronunciation: Ar-thro-plur-ah Meaning of name: "Rib joint". Species: A. armata, A. britannica, A. cristata, A. enodis, A. maillieuxi, A. mammata, A. punctata Size: The largest species, A. armata, measured around 2.5 metres long. Family: Arthropleuridae. Diet: Uncertain since none of the known fossils have the mouth preserved. Most likely herbivorous. First fossils found: Known from several specimens and fossilised track ways discovered in Scotland and the northeastern United States. A. armata named in 1854. A. mammata named in 1863. A. punctata named in 1873. A. britannica named in 1913. A. maillieuxi named in 1930. A. enodis named in 1934. A. cristata named in 1959. Lived: 345 to 295 million years ago from the Viséan stage of the Early Carboniferous to the Asselian stage of the Early Permian in what is now Scotland and the northeastern United States. Extinction is thought to have been caused when the moist climate began drying out, reducing the rainforests of the Carboniferous.
Pronunciation: Or-ni-meg-ah-lon-ix Meaning of name: "Bird giant claw". Also known as 'The Cuban Giant Owl' and 'The Giant Cursorial Owl'. Species: O. oteroi, O. minor, O. gigas, O. acevedoi. Size: 1.1 metres tall and weighing around 9kgs. Family: Strigidae. Diet: Carnivore. First fossils found: Known from several specimens, some of which are almost complete, discovered only in Cuba and the surrounding islands. Date of first discovery uncertain. O. oteroi named by Cuban palaeontologist, Oscar Paulino Arredondo de la Mata, in 1954. O. minor, O. gigas and O. acevedoi named in 1982. Ornimegalonyx had relatively small wings, so it's unclear whether or not it was capable of flight. Lived: 126,000 to 11,700 years ago during the Tarantian stage of the Late Pleistocene in what is now Cuba.
Today's entry is a cat whose diet is thought to have included early humans: Dinofelis
Pronunciation: Die-no-fel-is Meaning of name: "Terrible cat". Species: D. aronoki, D. barlowi, D. cristata, D. darti, D. diastemata, D. paleoonca, D. petteri, D. piveteaui Size: Depending on species, measured between 1 and 2.5 metres long and weighing up to 120kgs. Family: Felidae Diet: Carnivore First fossils found: Known from several specimens discovered across Africa, Eurasia and the United States. First discovered and named by Austrian palaeontologist, Otto Karl Josef Zdansky, in 1924. Lived: Between 5 and 1.2 million years ago from the Zanclean stage of the Pliocene to the Calabrian stage of the Pleistocene in what is now Eurasia, Africa and the United States.
Today's entry is one of the first four-limbed vertebrates to have evolved: Ichthyostega
Pronunciation: Ik-thee-o-stay-gah Meaning of name: "Fish roof". Species: I. stensioei, I.watsoni, I.egili Size: 1.5 metres long and weighed around 22kgs. Family: Uncertain Diet: Carnivore First fossils found: Known from several specimens discovered in eastern Greenland. Unfortunately, the forelimbs are yet to be found. Named by Swedish palaeontologist, Gunnar Säve-Söderbergh, in 1932. Lived: 372.2 to 358.9 million years ago during the Famennian stage of the Late Devonian in what is now eastern Greenland.
Today's animal is a marine cephalopod: Parapuzosia
Pronunciation: Pah-rah-pu-zo-se-ah Meaning of name: "Near Puzosia". Species: P. seppenradensis, P. bradyi, P. daubreei. Size: Varies depending on species. P. seppenradensis, the largest species, is estimated to have had a shell diameter of between 2.5 and 3.5 metres, making it the largest-known Ammonite species. Family: Desmoceratidae. Diet: Carnivore. First fossils found: Known from many specimens discovered across Africa, Europe and the United States. P. daubreei named in 1894. P. seppenradensis named in 1895. P. bradyi named in 1946. Lived: 100.5 to 72.1 million years ago from the Cenomanian stage through to the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous in the warm oceans that once covered parts of what is now Africa, Europe and the United States.