BRASILIA: Named Gondwanax paraisensis, the four-legged reptile species was roughly the size of a small dog with a long tail, or about 1 meter long and weighing between 3 and 6 kg, the scientists said in a statement on Monday. The small reptile would have likely roamed the land of what is today southern Brazil.
The fossil has been identified as a new silesaurid, an extinct group of reptiles. Paleontologists debate whether silesaurids were true dinosaurs or possibly a precursor to the creatures that once dominated the Earth. Understanding the characteristics of these precursors could shed light on what was crucial for the dinosaurs' evolutionary success," the statement said. Unearthed in a rock layer dating back to the Triassic period, between 252 million and 201 million years ago, the Gondwanax paraisensis fossil comes from the time when dinosaurs as well as mammals, crocodiles, turtles and frogs first arose. — Reuters
Oman Observer is now on the WhatsApp channel. Click here
