Thursday, September 23, 2010

2 new dinosaur species discovered in southern Utah

http://d.yimg.com/a/p/ap/20100922/capt.f61a2a34327b4319be057e330914756b-f61a2a34327b4319be057e330914756b-0.jpg?x=400&y=305&q=85&sig=lNk1kRBqElz9TSreQvI59g--

By BROCK VERGAKIS, Associated Press Writer

SALT LAKE CITY – Scientists said Wednesday they've discovered fossils in the southern Utah desert of two new dinosaur species closely related to the Triceratops, including one with 15 horns on its large head.

The discovery of the new plant-eating species — including Kosmoceratops richardsoni, considered the most ornate-headed dinosaur known to man — was reported Wednesday in the online scientific journal PLoS ONE, produced by the Public Library of Science.

The other dinosaur, which has five horns and is the larger of the two, was dubbed Utahceratops gettyi.

"It's not every day that you find two rhino-sized dinosaurs that are different from all the other dinosaurs found in North America," said Mark Loewen, a Utah Museum of Natural History paleontologist and an author of the paper published in PLoS ONE.

"You would think that we know everything there is to know about the dinosaurs of western North America, but every year we're finding new things, especially here in Utah," he said...

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