Palaeontology

New 'Sauron' dinosaur discovered

By T.K. Randall
November 8, 2012 ·  3 comments

Image Credit: David Monniaux The new dinosaur is named Sauroniops pachytholus which means "eye of Sauron" in Greek, a tribute to the fact that only the upper skull and eye socket of the creature was found. The species would have stalked the wilds of North Africa over 95 million years ago and sported a long skull featuring rows of deadly blade-like teeth. Scientists estimate that it would have been up to 40ft long.

"The idea of a predator that is physically known only as its fierce eye reminded me of Sauron, in particular as depicted in Peter Jackson's movies," said study leader Andrea Cau. A particularly unusual feature of Sauroniops was that it had a distinctive lump on its forehead which the research team believe may have been used for head-butting clashes during mating displays.[!gad]The new dinosaur is named Sauroniops pachytholus which means "eye of Sauron" in Greek, a tribute to the fact that only the upper skull and eye socket of the creature was found. The species would have stalked the wilds of North Africa over 95 million years ago and sported a long skull featuring rows of deadly blade-like teeth. Scientists estimate that it would have been up to 40ft long.

"The idea of a predator that is physically known only as its fierce eye reminded me of Sauron, in particular as depicted in Peter Jackson's movies," said study leader Andrea Cau. A particularly unusual feature of Sauroniops was that it had a distinctive lump on its forehead which the research team believe may have been used for head-butting clashes during mating displays.

Source: National Geographic | Comments (3)

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