Khaberni - Brazilian scientists have discovered a new type of giant dinosaurs, related to a similar type found in Spain, which supports the evidence that land paths were connecting parts of South America, Africa, and Europe about 120 million years ago, according to "Reuters".
The new species has been named (Dausosaurus Tocantinensis), and it is among the largest dinosaurs found in Brazil, with its description published this month in the Journal of Systematic Paleontology.
The fossils were found in 2021 at an infrastructure site near the city of Davinopolis, in the state of Maranhão, northeastern Brazil.
The remains included a femur bone about 1.5 meters long, which helped researchers estimate the dinosaur's length at about 20 meters.
Leonardo Kerber, a paleontologist at the Federal University of Santa Maria and a participant in the study said, "As the excavation progressed day by day, we began to realize we were dealing with a massive bone, which is the femur."
He added, "This indicates that it was a very massive dinosaur. Today, we know that Dausosaurus is among the largest dinosaurs ever found in Brazil."
According to the university, analyses indicated that this species is the closest known relative to the dinosaur (Giarumpatitan morellensis) found in Spain.
The university explained that the lineage of these dinosaurs is originally European, and they likely spread to what is now known as South America around 130 million years ago, most likely through Northern Africa before the Atlantic Ocean fully formed in its current state, completely separating the continents.
