Evolution

A 95 million year gap in the Madagascan fossil record has been filled! Before this, no fossils from “between 70 and 165 million years ago could be identified.”

Dahalokely tokana (which means ‘lonely small bandit’ in the Malagasy language) was dug up in 2007 and 2010. The specimen was identified all the way down to the species level based on the uncovered vertebrae and ribs. These areas are very distinctive in some dinosaurs and can be used to identify them. The scientists were able to classify Dahalokely as an abelisaurid.

Dahalokely roamed the earth around 90 million years ago, at a time when Madagascar and India were connected, but isolated from other landmasses. As such, it is possible that Dahalokely was the ancestor of subsequent animals that lived in both India and Madagascar. Indeed, the fossils display features that are found in dinosaurs from both India and Madagascar. However, too little is known about this species for the evidence to be conclusive. As such, this is still a matter to be researched. "This just reinforces the importance of exploring new areas around the world where undiscovered dinosaur species are still waiting."

Read all about it: http://bit.ly/14BMuaT
Image: An artist’s depiction of Carnotaurus, another abelisaurid, which lived in what is now South America.
Image source: http://bit.ly/Z8IfPW