Scotland's earliest and most complete dinosaur fossil has been formally identified and described, marking a milestone in paleontological research. The fossil, known as the Elgol dinosaur, has been revealed to be a Middle Jurassic-era ornithopod dinosaur.
The fossil is dated to around 166 million years ago, in the Middle Jurassic period. Experts identified parts of the spine, ribs, and hipbones of the dinosaur. Bone analysis indicates that the Elgol dinosaur was at least eight years old when it died and belonged to the ornithopod group of dinosaurs—a category of plant-eating species that includes later dinosaurs such as Iguanodon, Parasaurolophus, and Edmontosaurus.
The Elgol dinosaur is one of the oldest known ornithopod body fossils, predating the period when the group became more prominent in the later Cretaceous, according to The National. "The Elgol dinosaur was a challenge to collect, and has proven perhaps an even bigger challenge to identify," said Professor Susie Maidment of the Natural History Museum and the University of Birmingham, according to BBC News.
Initially spotted near Elgol in 1973, the fossil remained embedded in the cliff for decades. In 2018, Dr Elsa Panciroli led a team that successfully extracted the fossil, overcoming challenges in the process. "This was a really challenging extraction; in fact, we'd previously felt it was too difficult to collect the fossil, but I thought it was really important to study it," Dr Panciroli stated, according to BBC News. She added: "I was able to persuade the team to give it a try. It took a lot of hard work from a lot of people, but we did it: finally we can confirm and publish Scotland's first recorded and most complete dinosaur, and that makes it all worthwhile."
The excavation was made possible with support from a specialist team at Research Casting International, based in Canada, and with the assistance of a local boat company, Bella Jane Boat Trips. A local crew piloted the rigid inflatable boat and dinghy to the shore at the foot of the cliff, where the specimen was loaded and taken back to port, according to The National.
"This is a wonderful addition to the rapidly growing set of Jurassic finds from the Isle of Skye which are enabling us to learn more and more about the rich ecosystem of the time," said Stig Walsh from National Museums Scotland, as reported by Sky News. The Elgol dinosaur fossil, although fragmented and partial, is the most complete dinosaur skeleton found to date in Scotland.
The Isle of Skye has become a focal point for Jurassic discoveries in recent years. Other finds include the world's largest Jurassic pterosaur fossil, Dearc sgiathanach, a 170-million-year-old winged reptile, according to The National. Additionally, hundreds of dinosaur tracks have been discovered across Skye, as reported by Sky News. "Recent research on the fossils of Elgol has revealed a diverse ecosystem of extraordinarily preserved Middle Jurassic animals, and I'm sure there are more exciting discoveries to come," according to BBC News.
Dinosaur finds are rare in Scotland due to the geological composition of the land, where much of the exposed rock is not from the Mesozoic era—the period encompassing the Triassic, Jurassic, and Cretaceous periods. In contrast, dinosaur finds are more common in southern England, where more of the exposed rock is geologically newer, as reported by Sky News.
The new description of the Elgol dinosaur was published in the Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. "I would like to congratulate Dr Panciroli and her international team of co-authors. Having this exceptional piece of work on the Elgol dinosaur—both Scotland's earliest and most complete dinosaur fossil—in the pages of Transactions is a highlight for the journal. It is a privilege to be able to publish a world-class study led from Scotland which illustrates why the Scottish palaeontological community is held in such high esteem," said Professor Rob Ellam, editor of the journal.
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