Fossil skull and partial skull roof from Carnegie Museum of Natural History was reevaluated and reclassified, leading to the emergence of a new genus and species of dicraeosaurid sauropod dinosaurs: Athenara dared.
Athenara dared lived in what is now Utah, USA, during the Late Jurassic period, 151–150 million years ago.
The dinosaur remains, designated specimen 26552 from the Carnegie Museum (CM), were originally collected in 1913 from rocks belonging to Morrison Formation at the Carnegie Quarry at Dinosaur National Monument.
So far the sample has been appointed to a genus of sauropod dinosaurs called Diplodocus.
“The Carnegie Museum of Natural History houses some of the most important specimens for our understanding of the cranial anatomy of diplodocoid sauropods,” said Dr. John Whitlock, a researcher at Mount Aloysius College and the Carnegie Museum of Natural History.
“One specimen, CM 26552, is often overlooked in favor of more complete skulls, but it is of great historical importance because it formed the basis of the modern description of the anatomy of the skull Diplodocus like a family.”
“In light of several decades of new discoveries since the original description in 1978, we are re-evaluating the anatomy and taxonomic relationships of this specimen.”
The new analysis shows that the features of CM 26552 better match another group of sauropods: Dicreosaurids.
“CM 26552 exhibits a mosaic of features that allow it to be confidently distinguished from other known North American dicraeosaurid species,” the paleontologists said.
“Based on this, we assign CM 26552 to a new genus Afinar with a specific epithet have faith“
The study also shows that Athenara dared Closely related to the genus Dicreosauridae. Mouthwash.
“Consideration of CM 26552 as a new dicraeosaurid species expands knowledge of the diversity of this family in the Morrison Formation and North America in general, expanding the historically underappreciated diversity of sauropods in this order,” the researchers said.
conclusions were published online this month in the magazine Paleontology Electronics.
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John A. Whitlock etc.. 2025. Athenara dareda new species of dicraeosaurid sauropod from Dinosaur National Monument, Utah, USA. Paleontology Electronics 28 (3): a50; two: 10.26879/1550
