115-Million-Year-Old Dinosaur Fossil Discovered in Deep Drill Core in China
Scientists have identified the first dinosaur fossil from a remote western section of the Bayan Gobi Formation in China’s Inner Mongolia. The specimen, cataloged as 208GPV01, was unexpectedly recovered from a drill core at a depth of 473 meters (1,500 feet) near Guaizihu in the Yin’gen-Ejinaqi Basin during a copper mineral survey. Dating back approximately 115 million years to the Early Cretaceous epoch, the fossil primarily consists of proximal tail vertebrae along with several associated elements, including a sacral rib, four caudal vertebral centra, six caudal neural arches, several transverse processes, and ossified tendons. Researchers, including Dr. Lida Xing from the China University of Geosciences, determined that the specimen belongs to Ornithischia, a group of plant-eating, bird-hipped dinosaurs. While its vertebral proportions most closely resemble those of Psittacosaurus, the limited material prevents assignment to a specific genus or species, classifying it as an indeterminate ornithischian fo...
