Scientists Discover Fossil Of Missing Link In The T Rex Family

Just when you think you know everything there is to know about dinosaurs, there is a new kid on the block. In this case, it is a relative of one of the more famous dinosaurs, the Tyrannosaurus rex.

According to the Dickinson Museum Center, the new species is Daspletosaurus wilsoni, and it is thought to be a direct ancestor of the T Rex. It may even provide a link that shows how the T Rex developed some of its unique characteristics, including the ridges (hornets) above the eye socket.

The museum shared about the discovery on Facebook back in late November and it’s received massive attention ever since.

As far as the T Rex was concerned, scientists feel that it was at the top of the food chain during the Cretaceous Era. Considering it was a dinosaur that weighed 10,000 pounds and ferociously ate meat, we would tend to agree.

What you may not know is that there are nine animals known to exist in the Tyrannosauridae family, which are thought to be ancestors of the Tyrannosaur. The new fossils may provide an indication of a family link between those two families.

In order to identify the Daspletosaurus wilsoni, researchers had to dig through 26 feet of solid rock. Additionally, a fossil was seen projecting from the bottom of a cliff, and it was part of the nostril of the dinosaur.

As you can imagine, it took quite some time to uncover those fossils that were located near the Judith River formation in northeastern Montana. The dig took place between 2017 and 2021.

After uncovering the individual bones by chiseling the rock away with jackhammers, they named the specimen “Sisyphus” after a Greek character who was forced to push a boulder up a mountain for all eternity by Hades.

During the Late Cretaceous period in North America, some believe there were many closely related species of dinosaurs that existed. Those species seem to have appeared out of nowhere, and there is still much that has to be learned about their development and perhaps some other species that have not yet been discovered.