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Gadoufaoua
The Elrhaz Formation is a geological formation in Niger, central Africa. Its strata date back to the Early Cretaceous, about 125 to 112 million years ago. Dinosaur remains are among the fossils that have been recovered from the formation, alongside those of multiple species of crocodyliformes. Gadoufaoua Gadoufaoua (Tuareg for "the place where camels fear to go") is a site within the Elrhaz Formation (located at ) in the Tenere desert of Niger known for its extensive fossil graveyard. It is where remains of ''Sarcosuchus imperator'', popularly known as SuperCroc, were found (by Paul Sereno in 1997, for example), including vertebrae, limb bones, armor plates, jaws, and a nearly complete skull. Gadoufaoua is very hot and dry. However, it is supposed that millions of years ago, Gadoufaoua had trees, plants and wide rivers. The river covered the remains of dead animals, the fossilized remains of which were protected by the drying rivers over millions of years. Vertebrate p ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
SuperCroc
''Sarcosuchus'' (; ) is an extinct genus of crocodyliform and distant relative of living crocodilians that lived during the Early Cretaceous, from the late Hauterivian to the early Albian, 133 to 112 million years ago of what is now Africa and South America. The genus name comes from the Greek σάρξ (''sarx'') meaning flesh and σοῦχος (''souchus'') meaning crocodile. It was one of the largest crocodile-like reptiles, reaching an average estimate of and , but estimated to grow up to in body length and weigh up to . It is known from two species, ''S. imperator'' from the early Albian Elrhaz Formation of Niger and ''S. hartti'' from the Late Hauterivian of northeastern Brazil, other material is known from Morocco and Tunisia and possibly Libya and Mali. The first remains were discovered during several expeditions led by the French paleontologist Albert-Félix de Lapparent, spanning from 1946 to 1959, in the Sahara. These remains were fragments of the skull, vertebrae, t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sarcosuchus Imperator
''Sarcosuchus'' (; ) is an extinct genus of crocodyliform and distant relative of living crocodilians that lived during the Early Cretaceous, from the late Hauterivian to the early Albian, 133 to 112 million years ago of what is now Africa and South America. The genus name comes from the Greek σάρξ (''sarx'') meaning flesh and σοῦχος (''souchus'') meaning crocodile. It was one of the largest crocodile-like reptiles, reaching an average estimate of and , but estimated to grow up to in body length and weigh up to . It is known from two species, ''S. imperator'' from the early Albian Elrhaz Formation of Niger and ''S. hartti'' from the Late Hauterivian of northeastern Brazil, other material is known from Morocco and Tunisia and possibly Libya and Mali. The first remains were discovered during several expeditions led by the French paleontologist Albert-Félix de Lapparent, spanning from 1946 to 1959, in the Sahara. These remains were fragments of the skull, vertebrae ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Paul Sereno
Paul Callistus Sereno (born October 11, 1957) is a professor of paleontology at the University of Chicago and a National Geographic "explorer-in-residence" who has discovered several new dinosaur species on several continents, including at sites in Inner Mongolia, Argentina, Morocco and Niger. One of his most widely publicized discoveries is that of a nearly complete specimen of ''Sarcosuchus imperator'' — popularly known as SuperCroc — at Gadoufaoua in the Tenere desert of Niger. Biography Youth and education The son of a mail carrier and an art teacher at Prairie Elementary, Sereno grew up in Naperville, Illinois and graduated from Naperville Central High School. He was then educated at Northern Illinois University (B.S., Biological Sciences, 1979) and Columbia University (M.A., Vertebrate Paleontology, 1981; M. Phil., Geological Sciences, 1981; Ph.D., Geological Sciences, 1987). Career Sereno was named one of ''People'' magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People (1997). Ser ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Asiatoceratodus
''Asiatoceratodus'' is an extinct genus of lungfish which lived during the Middle-Late Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous periods in what is now Asia (Kyrgyzstan), Africa (Ethiopia, Niger, Algeria, Morocco) and South America (Uruguay and Brazil). Species ''Asiatoceratodus sharovi'' Complete skeletons of ''Asiatoceratodus sharovi'' first described by Vorobyeva (1967) from the Middle-Late Triassic deposits of Fergana valley in Kyrgyzstan. This species is characterizes by toothed plates with 4 to 5 crests.M. G. Minich. 1977.Triassic Dipnoi of Eastern European part of USSR" (in Russian) Saratov University Publishing. Page 8. ''Asiaticeratodus tiguidiensis'' Another species originally was described from the Late Jurassic site of Algeria as ''Ceratodus tiguidiensis'' Later, ''C. tiguidiensis'' was assigned to ''Arganodus'' by M. Martin (1984) and reassigned by Kemp (1998) to the genus ''Asiatoceratodus''. Despite this, some authors uses ''Arganodus tiguidiensis'' in their articl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sandstone
Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates) because they are the most resistant minerals to weathering processes at the Earth's surface. Like uncemented sand, sandstone may be any color due to impurities within the minerals, but the most common colors are tan, brown, yellow, red, grey, pink, white, and black. Since sandstone beds often form highly visible cliffs and other topographic features, certain colors of sandstone have been strongly identified with certain regions. Rock formations that are primarily composed of sandstone usually allow the percolation of water and other fluids and are porous enough to store large quantities, making them valuable aquifers and petroleum reservoirs. Quartz-bearing sandstone can be changed into quartzite through metamorphism, usually related to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neoceratodus Forsteri Cologne Zoo
''Neoceratodus'' is a genus of lungfish in the family Neoceratodontidae. The extant Australian lungfish (''Neoceratodus forsteri'') is the only surviving member of this genus, but it was formerly much more widespread, being distributed throughout Africa, Australia, and South America. Species were also much more diverse in body plan; for example, the Cretaceous species ''Neoceratodus africanus'' was a gigantic species that coexisted with ''Spinosaurus'' in what is now the Kem Kem Formation of Morocco. The earliest fossils from this genus are of ''Neoceratodus potkooroki'' from the mid Cretaceous (Albian-Cenomanian) Griman Creek Formation of Australia, remains from the Late Jurassic of Uruguay assigned to this genus probably do not belong to the genus. Species The following species are currently classified in this genus: * †''Neoceratodus africanus'' * †''Neoceratodus eyrensis'' * ''Neoceratodus forsteri'' (Queensland lungfish) *†''Neoceratodus potkooroki'' * †''Neocerato ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dipnomorpha
Lungfish are freshwater vertebrates belonging to the order Dipnoi. Lungfish are best known for retaining ancestral characteristics within the Osteichthyes, including the ability to breathe air, and ancestral structures within Sarcopterygii, including the presence of lobed fins with a well-developed internal skeleton. Lungfish represent the closest living relatives of the tetrapods. Today there are only six known species of lungfish, living in Africa, South America, and Australia. The fossil record shows that lungfish were abundant since the Triassic. While vicariance would suggest this represents an ancient distribution limited to the Mesozoic supercontinent Gondwana, the fossil record suggests advanced lungfish had a widespread freshwater distribution and the current distribution of modern lungfish species reflects extinction of many lineages subsequent to the breakup of Pangaea, Gondwana and Laurasia. Lungfish have historically been referred to as salamanderfish, but th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neoceratodus Africanus
''Neoceratodus'' is a genus of lungfish in the family Neoceratodontidae. The extant Australian lungfish (''Neoceratodus forsteri'') is the only surviving member of this genus, but it was formerly much more widespread, being distributed throughout Africa, Australia, and South America. Species were also much more diverse in body plan; for example, the Cretaceous species '' Neoceratodus africanus'' was a gigantic species that coexisted with ''Spinosaurus'' in what is now the Kem Kem Formation of Morocco. The earliest fossils from this genus are of ''Neoceratodus potkooroki'' from the mid Cretaceous (Albian-Cenomanian) Griman Creek Formation of Australia, remains from the Late Jurassic of Uruguay assigned to this genus probably do not belong to the genus. Species The following species are currently classified in this genus: * †'' Neoceratodus africanus'' * †''Neoceratodus eyrensis'' * ''Neoceratodus forsteri'' (Queensland lungfish) *†''Neoceratodus potkooroki'' * †''Neocer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Neoceratodus
''Neoceratodus'' is a genus of lungfish in the family Neoceratodontidae. The extant Australian lungfish (''Neoceratodus forsteri'') is the only surviving member of this genus, but it was formerly much more widespread, being distributed throughout Africa, Australia, and South America. Species were also much more diverse in body plan; for example, the Cretaceous species '' Neoceratodus africanus'' was a gigantic species that coexisted with ''Spinosaurus'' in what is now the Kem Kem Formation of Morocco. The earliest fossils from this genus are of ''Neoceratodus potkooroki'' from the mid Cretaceous (Albian-Cenomanian) Griman Creek Formation of Australia, remains from the Late Jurassic of Uruguay assigned to this genus probably do not belong to the genus. Species The following species are currently classified in this genus: * †'' Neoceratodus africanus'' * †'' Neoceratodus eyrensis'' * ''Neoceratodus forsteri'' (Queensland lungfish) *†'' Neoceratodus potkooroki'' * †'' Neo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mawsonia (fish)
''Mawsonia'' is an extinct genus of prehistoric coelacanth fish. It is the amongst the largest of all coelacanths, with one quadrate specimen (DGM 1.048-P) possibly belonging to an individual measuring in length. It lived in freshwater and brackish environments from the latest Jurassic to the mid-Cretaceous ( Tithonian to Cenomanian stages, about 152 to 96 million years ago) of South America, eastern North America, and Africa. ''Mawsonia'' was first described by British paleontologist Arthur Smith Woodward in 1907.''Mawsonia'' at Fossilworks.org Description [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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