210-million-year-old dinosaur discovered in Zimbabwe
Paleontologists have identified a new dinosaur species, Musango matusadonaensis, discovered in Zimbabwe. Dating back 210 million years, the find suggests that southern African ecosystems were more diverse than previously assumed.
Why it matters
This discovery provides critical new data for understanding the evolution and geographic distribution of dinosaurs during the Late Triassic period.
This handout picture taken on May 18, 2019 and released on September 1, 2022 shows Sterling Nesbitt (L) and Christopher Griffin (R) excavating a skeleton of a herrerasaurid dinosaur in the Zambezi Valley in northern Zimbabwe. Scientists in Zimbabwe have discovered the remains of a new dinosaur species - the oldest ever found in Africa - which roamed the earth about 230 million years ago. FILE PHOTO/Agence France-Presse
JOHANNESBURG - A newly discovered dinosaur from Zimbabwe is offering fresh clues to how the animals diversified, suggesting they spread across distinct ecosystems in southern Africa, scientists said Wednesday.
The discovery of the new species, named Musango matusadonaensis, is based on a skeleton excavated on the shores of Lake Kariba in northern Zimbabwe in 2018, and is the fifth dinosaur identified from the country, they said.
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