Say when a scientist discovers a new skull fragment from a T-Rex, how do they know it’s a skull fragment from a T-Rex and not like a fragment of some unknown species of dinosaur?
In: Biology
This can get contentious, and the dinosaur family tree is constantly being revised as new fossils are found and old fossils are reclassified.
With a single incomplete skeleton that’s similar but not the same as a known species it can be very difficult to say exactly what you have.
Is this a juvenile of a species we only know from adults?
Is it a female of a species we only know from males?
Is it a new species entirely? A regional variation? An abnormal individual that’s not representative of the species? Diseased? Hybrid?
With modern animals we can observe hundreds of individuals at different life stages to get a complete picture of what they look like but that’s not possible with dinosaurs.
It’s still hotly debated whether small tryrannosaurid and triceratops-like fossils are separate species or just juveniles of known species.
Latest Answers