Tiny Tyrannosaur forces scientists to rethink
A new mini Tyrannosaurus rex has been discovered that has left some scientists admitting that everything they had previously understood about the king of the dinosaur’s evolution was far too simplistic or just plain wrong.
The distinctive features of the Tyrannosaurs were thought to have been developed because of their size. However the new discovery proves that this can’t have been the case. Raptorex kriegsteini lived 60 million years before its giant cousin and at three meters long was only a fifth of its length and 100 times lighter. Other than size the smaller dinosaur looked and behaved almost exactly the same as its enormous relative. It had the same big head and small arms and would have been just as effective when hunting.
The story of the fossil’s discovery is shrouded in mystery. It was unearthed somewhere in Mongolia and then sold into the hands of private collector Henry Kriegstein. Mr. Kriegstein then approached Dr. Paul Sereno at the University of Chicago to examine the find. Dr. Sereno agreed on condition that the fossil would then be returned to China as a donation to science.
Scientists say that the Raptorex kriegsteini lived around 125 million years ago and would have been very compact, like a horse and capable of running very fast in order to catch its prey. Its powerful jaws would have been used to kill and its small forearms would have atrophied over time as the jaws and legs became more powerful. It is assumed that other predators like the Allosaurs died out leaving the way clear for the Tyrannosaurs to get bigger and bigger.