Earliest known dinosaur fossil

'As the earliest known dinosaur, Nyasasaurus parringtoni gives us the first glimpse of what would become the major group of terrestrial animals for the next 150 million years.'
Prof Paul Barrett, vertebrate palaeontologist

Nyasasaurus parringtoni lived around 245 million years ago, making it the earliest known dinosaur.

The Museum holds the type specimen of N. parringtoni - a partial skeleton that includes vertebrae and an arm bone. Based on these fossils, N. parringtoni was formally described and named a new species in 2012.

Dinosaurs are distinguished by a number of anatomical quirks, among them the characteristics of their limb bones. This early reptile represents the roots of the dinosaur family tree. Fossils from the period reveal early dinosaurs to be a minor group of unusual, bipedal reptiles, living in a world dominated by other groups.

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