Zimbabwe's dinosaurs were different from South Africa's: New species offers clues
Paleontologists have identified a new sauropodomorph dinosaur species, Musango matusadonaensis, in Zimbabwe. This discovery provides new insights into the early stages of dinosaur evolution in Africa.
Why it matters
Understanding the evolutionary history of African dinosaurs helps map the global development of early species and highlights the continent's paleontological significance.
edited by Lisa Lock , reviewed by Andrew Zinin
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Add to Preferred Sources Reconstruction of Musango. Credit: Mark Witton / The Trustees of the Natural History Museum Africa boasts up to 25% of Earth's animal and plant species . This diversity is driven by varied habitats: harsh deserts, vast grasslands, dense forests, towering mountains, lush coastlines and teeming seas. It is also due to deep evolutionary roots, as many animal and plant groups originated here in the distant past. Paleontologists have been excavating this material for nearly two centuries .
Africa is most famous for spectacular hominid fossils that reveal our own ancestry. However, the continent boasts many fabulous fossil finds, including those of the most familiar extinct animals—dinosaurs.
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