New remains of small dinosaur found in northern Spain

La Rioja, Spain, Oct 3 (EFE).- New fossilized skeletal remains of a small ornithopod – herbivore – dinosaur have been discovered this weekend in northern Spain that could be evidence of a new genus of the extinct animal.

The remains are the distal part of a tibia and the central part of a femur, as well as several indeterminate bone remains of the dinosaur, which was first found in the area in 1985, Francisco Sáez-Benito, member of the team in charge, told Efe.

This discovery could lead to the declaration of “a new genus” of ornithopod, given it could disprove the current idea of the animal thought to be a Hypsilophodontidae of 1.8 to 2 meters in length and about 80cm in height.

The objective of the research team is to expand the excavation area to recover more remains of this small herbivore dinosaur, the expert added.

Before the current mission, a total of 74 pieces belonging to all the anatomical areas of the dinosaur had been discovered.

The remains of these animals are rare in Europe, so “their discovery will probably allow us to shed light on their distribution and describe a new species,” he added. EFE

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