Researchers have confirmed that a fossil stored for 40 years at the British Antarctic Survey in Cambridge is the first dinosaur bone ever discovered in Antarctica. The specimen was originally collected on James Ross Island in 1985 and documented in a field notebook by geologist Dr Mike Thomson, who sketched the fossil and noted it measured approximately 10 centimeters wide. The team that initially found the fossil was uncertain about its classification and placed it in storage among thousands of other specimens brought back from Antarctic expeditions.
Dr Mark Evans, the collections manager at BAS, recently identified the fossil while reviewing items in the facility’s collection. He recognized distinctive features characteristic of dinosaurs and consulted Prof Paul Barrett from the Natural History Museum to confirm the find. Barrett examined the bone’s unique anatomical features, including a hollow on one end and a rounded bump on the other, which form part of a ball-and-socket joint system that runs along the spine from head to tail.
The fossil has been identified as a tail vertebra from a Titanosaur, a group that includes some of the largest dinosaurs to have ever existed. More than 100 Titanosaur species have been identified globally, all of which were four-legged herbivores with elongated necks and counterbalancing tails. Based on the size of the vertebra, scientists estimate the Antarctic specimen measured approximately 23 feet in length, suggesting it may have been either a juvenile or a notably smaller adult compared to other members of its species.
The dinosaur inhabited Antarctica approximately 82 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous Period, when the continent featured lush forests and a much warmer climate than today. The discovery provides valuable insights into prehistoric Antarctic ecosystems and how large herbivores adapted to life in this region. Prof Barrett noted that the finding demonstrates Antarctica’s former habitability and contributes to understanding the diversity of species that existed there millions of years ago. The research has been published in the journal Acta Palaeontologica Polonica.
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