Even the skies ended up occupied – very long-winged traveling pterosaurs swooped overhead, at times diving down to snatch a tasty fish out of the river.

Named once the region of Niger, where by its fossils had been to start with discovered. The identify was selected to reflect its origins, even so, the similarity in pronunciation to some racial slur has elevated fears about cultural sensitivity and suitable terminology.

Nigersaurus had above five hundred teeth arranged in dental batteries (rows of teeth stacked on other rows of teeth), which allowed it to successfully graze on reduced-lying vegetation like ferns and horsetails. Worn teeth had been constantly replaced to keep up Niversaurus' effective feeding.

Nigersaurus, a rebbachisaurid sauropod from the middle Cretaceous interval, was uncovered inside the Elrhaz Formation in Niger. Its identify, which suggests “Niger’s lizard,” was offered next the discovery of much more entire continues to be in 1999, Even though its fossils have been initially explained in 1976.

The Nigersaurus had very long neck. It absolutely was about twice the length of its body. This adaptation is thought to have progressed to be able to allow for Nigersaurus to achieve larger levels of vegetation. Nigersaurus also experienced an exceptionally modest head. It measured only about thirty centimetres (twelve inches) in width. 

 lived in what is currently Niger about a hundred and fifteen to a hundred and five million years in the past, in the course of the Aptian and Albian ages of the mid-Cretaceous. It most likely lived in habitats dominated by inland floodplains (a riparian zone).

We carefully brushed the sand from the a hundred and ten million-calendar year-outdated bones and dug channels involving the foremost areas Nigersaurus of the skeleton. Soon We're going to address Every location in plaster so the skeleton might be transported away from the sector and back again on the laboratory.

Its cranium was really specialised for feeding. It had four massive aspect fenestrae, openings from the skull and skinny bones. It had a wide muzzle full of a lot more than five hundred teeth, which have been changed all-around every 14 days. The jaws may have experienced a keratinous sheath, a little something similar to a huge beak. Nigersaurus is the sole acknowledged tetrapod animal to own had jaws wider compared to the skull and teeth that extended laterally across the entrance.

This revelation originates from The truth that, In spite of its elongated nostrils, the olfactory (smelling) region of its brain was relatively compact for its size. 11. Nigersaurus could almost certainly see virtually 360 levels even though feeding

Its head is what actually stands out about Nigersaurus, though. The jaws, which have a flat entrance, are lined with about 500 teeth, which Sereno claims were replaceable. These teeth were being all the exact same in sizing, and he estimates they most likely only lasted about a month or so ahead of they had been worn down.

 Teeth at unique progress stages, Museo di Storia Naturale di Venezia The slender teeth experienced marginally curved tooth crowns, which were being oval in cross-area. The crowns were distinctive in obtaining notable ridges over the margins of their midline and sides. The teeth in the decrease jaw might are already 20–thirty% smaller sized than Those people inside the higher jaw, but number of are known, and they are of unsure maturity. In addition to this, the teeth were being equivalent.[4] Underneath Each and every Lively tooth there was a column of nine substitution teeth inside the jaw.

Nigersaurus lived in what is now the Sahara Desert over the mid-Cretaceous time period, approximately a hundred and fifteen to a hundred and five million several years back, in the lush, riverine habitat with plentiful plant life.

Dinosaur-hunters are utilized to discovering dental batteries in beaked herbivores such as horned Triceratops and shovel-billed Edmontosaurus. However they're uncommon Among the many sauropods.

This intriguing variation showcases the numerous techniques dinosaurs formulated to thrive within their environments. The Nigersaurus’s rapid tooth alternative, developing each and every 14 times, is additionally amazing, location it in addition to other sauropods that experienced slower tooth turnover.