At some point, back again from the lab, Sereno needed to ask for a second opinion from colleagues who labored on fossil fish and also other reptiles before he figured it out.
The authors hence cautioned in opposition to working with semicircular canals as proxy to infer the precise orientation of skulls. They observed that diet plan correlated strongly with semicircular canal orientation, although not with head posture, even though head posture and semicircular canal orientation were being strongly correlated with phylogeny.[25]
Nigersaurus was named and explained in more element by Sereno and colleagues only in 1999, according to continues to be of newly identified people today. Exactly the same report also named Jobaria, another sauropod from Niger. The genus title Nigersaurus ("Niger reptile") is a reference towards the region in which it had been found out, and the specific identify taqueti honours Taquet, who was the initial to organise substantial-scale palaeontological expeditions to Niger.
There have been debate on no matter if its head was habitually held downwards, or horizontally like other sauropods. It lived inside of a riparian habitat, and its eating plan possibly consisted of soppy plants, which include ferns, horsetails, and angiosperms. It truly is The most frequent fossil vertebrates found in the region, and shared its habitat with other dinosaurian megaherbivores, and massive theropods and crocodylomorphs.
If legitimate, it might starkly distinction with most sauropod reconstructions, displaying the animal Keeping its head horizontally.
This bizarre, extensive-necked dinosaur is characterised by its unusually wide, straight-edged muzzle tipped with in excess of 500 replaceable teeth. The original fossil cranium of Nigersaurus is without doubt one of the initially dinosaur skulls to generally be digitally reconstructed from CT scans.
As we’ve found, Nigersaurus experienced a large muzzle and diverse teeth beautifully fitted to consuming small-lying plants. This diet program and Life-style would have required the creature to have a continuous source of substitution teeth, because it would have worn out its tooth crowns quickly. A study printed within the journal PLOS One
The Nigersaurus was a ground-degree browser. Its vast muzzle, combined with its various teeth, authorized it to soak up huge quantities of vegetation in an individual bite. The orientation of its teeth, all positioned for the entrance of its jaws, enabled it to efficiently crop and gather food items near to the bottom.
Skeletal diagram exhibiting known aspects and size comparison Sereno plus the American palaeontologist Jeffrey A. Wilson supplied the initial detailed description on the cranium and feeding adaptations in 2005.[1] In 2007, a far more comprehensive description with the skeleton was revealed by Sereno ad colleagues, depending on a specimen found out ten yrs earlier. The fossils, in addition to a reconstructed skeleton mount and also a plastic model of The top and neck, were being subsequently presented for the National Geographic Culture in Washington.
Nigersaurus is believed to behave very similar to other herbivore sauropods. They had in all probability used most of their time in hold-dog positions and grazing reduced-lying vegetation.
Lifetime restoration Nigersaurus was distinct in that its dorsal (back) vertebrae had paired pneumatic Areas at the base of your neural spines (the spines that projected upwards within the vertebrae). The presacral vertebrae (vertebrae before the sacrum) have been seriously pneumatised to The purpose where by the column consisted of the series of hollow "shells", Each individual divided by a thin septum in the middle. It had minimal to no cancellous bone, building the centra thin bone plates filled with air spaces. The vertebral arches had been so intensely pierced by extensions of your external air sacs that of their aspect walls minor remained but two mm (0.
On The idea of microtomography scans of cranium features from the holotype specimen, Sereno and colleagues made a "prototype" Nigersaurus cranium they may study. In addition they built an endocast of your Mind and scanned the semicircular canals of its inner ear, which they observed for being oriented horizontally. Within their 2007 study, they said that the composition in the occiput in the back of the cranium and cervical vertebrae would've constrained the upward and downward motion of the neck and the rotation of your cranium.
The journey to uncover the secrets of your Nigersaurus began with the initial fossil fragments learned from the seventies inside the Elrhaz Formation of Niger, however it wasn’t until finally 1999 that much what dinosaur has 500 teeth more finish continues to be introduced this interesting dinosaur into your Highlight. These discoveries introduced paleontologists with both equally troubles and opportunities.
It even further argued that the orientation on the semicircular canals may differ substantially within just contemporary species, and it is hence not dependable for analyzing head posture.[23] This was supported by the Spanish palaeontologist Jesús Marugán-Lobón and colleagues within a 2013 analyze that recommended the approaches employed by Sereno's team have been imprecise, Which Nigersaurus habitually held its head like other sauropods.[24]