Tyrannosaurus rex has little cousins

According to a recent study, Tyrannosaurus rex has a "cousin" with a tiny size.

This dwarf dinosaur has the scientific name Nanuqsaurus hoglundi , once lived in Alaska area 70 million years ago. This is the result of the study published in PLOS ONE.

The skull of this new dinosaur is just over 60cm long, while the tyrant dinosaur has a skull that is over 150cm long. However, according to researchers Anthony Fiorillo and Ronald S. Tykoski and colleagues, of the Museum of Nature and Perot Science, the newly discovered dinosaur is still a tyrannosaur tyrant.

Tyrannosaur dinosaurs move on hind legs, specializing in carnivores and have relatively large skulls compared to their body size. To balance weight with such a large skull, the tyrannosaur's tail is strong and long.

Tyrannosaurus rex and "cousin" Nanuqsaurus hoglundi.(Photo: thescoopblog.dallasnews.com)

Tyrannosaurus has lived all over North America today. The new dinosaur of this small size was discovered in the far north of North America. Fossils were collected by scientists at the Prince Creek geological system in northern Alaska.

"The existence of this tiny tyrannosaur alone is great, because it tells us about the environment in the ancient Arctic," Fiorillo told a news conference. "But what makes this discovery even more interesting is that the Nanuqsaurus hoglundi also tells us more about the biodiversity in the ancient Arctic world during the time when the Earth was warmer than it is now. so many, so much".

The small body size of N. hoglundi compared to most typhoon dinosaurs living in lower latitudes may suggest adaptation in the condition of scarce food in the winter in the north. In other words, for the tyrant dinosaurs, the food source can be very abundant or very inadequate, and in some ways it has helped to produce a whole new species.

There are several theories about how dinosaurs cross the northern cold. One of them said that dinosaurs were hibernating. Another theory is that they migrated south in the coldest period, although the evidence for this hypothesis is not much.

Remnants of a duckbill dinosaur are also found in Alaska. These dinosaurs can live in groups or flocks, so they can warm each other. This can be a good prey for dinosaurs "cousins" with newly discovered tyrant dinosaurs.