76 million years old

New species of dinosaur reaches Aylmer!

 

One of the most recent discoveries in the field of palaeontology was unveiled in Aylmer, May 18, at the Canadian Museum of Nature Collections Facility on Pink Road. Dr Jordan Mallon, Museum paleontologist, announced a new species of horned dinosaur.

 

“The newest dinosaur in the Museum of Nature is Spiclypeus (spiked shield) shipporum,” said Mallon, who completed the scientific analysis identifying the new dinosaur and published his results in the magazine PLOS ONE.

“We know Spiclypeus is a new species based on a few key features, namely the horns and the frill,” explained Mallon.

Unlike other horned dinosaurs, the horns stick out sideways and not forward from the head.

“The back-head frill spikes near the midline curl forward, whereas the remaining spikes project outwards. We don’t see this ornamentation in other species, which is why we can be sure this animal is new to science,” said Mallon.

The team was unable to determine if the dinosaur, nicknamed Judith after the Judith River Formation where it was uncovered by Dr Bill Shipp, was male or female. Mallon’s team did establish that Judith, a herbivore, died at about 10 years old, had reached adult size weighing between 3 to 4 tons, and stood at about 15 metres tall. The team concluded that the 76 million-year-old beast lived through difficult years in today’s Montana.

“Judith’s story is of sorrow and resilience,” said Mallon, who explained that his team was able to detect that Judith suffered because of a bone infection. Dr Mallon even said he believed Judith ambled about on three legs for part of her or his life.

Dr Shipp, retired, made the discovery in 2005 as he searched for fossils on his newly acquired property. After studying, Dr Shipp went out with an amateur paleontologist to look for fossils.

“We knew it was a fossil-rich area, but had no expectations,” said Shipp. “We spent a couple of hours walking and ended up near a steep rocky ledge. That’s where I noticed a piece of femur sticking out of the ground,” he explained over the phone.

This marked the beginning of Shipp’s great adventure discovering fossils; he sold the Spiclypeus (spiked shield) shipporum for roughly $350,000 to the Canadian Museum of Nature, which holds one of the best dinosaur collections in the world.

Judith will be the main feature during a new public exhibit at the Museum of Nature in Ottawa, starting May 24.