Newly Discovered Dinosaur Species Shares the T. Rex’s Tiny Arms, But Has ‘No
Paleontologists have discovered a new giant predatory dinosaur and it had teeny tiny itty bitty arms.
The Meraxes Gigas, uncovered in northern Patagonia, Argentina, roamed the earth millions of years before Tyrannosaurus rex. But Juan Canale, the project lead at Ernesto Bachmann Paleontological Museum in Neuquén, Argentina, tells CNN that Meraxes has no direct relation to T. Rex.
Image credit: Carlos Papolio
After recovering a nearly complete forelimb, paleontologists determined that Meraxes had much smaller arms compared to the size of the rest of its body. Similar to a very famous predatory dinosaur we all know and love from movies.
Despite the discovery of many fossils the specifics on the anatomy of Meraxes have evaded scientists for nearly 30 years. The fossil the researchers recently unearthed has revealed much more about the carnivore, including that it was 36 feet long and weighed more than four tons.
The predators belong to the Carcharodontosaurid, a group of dinosaurs that inhabited most continents during the Early Cretaceous period.
While paleontologists continue to study the new bones for deeper insight into the Meraxes, it has been given an appropriate name for now.
According to the science journal Current Biology, Meraxes was named after a dragon in A Song of Ice and Fire ridden by Queen Rhaenys Targaryen, who is set to appear in the upcoming series House of the Dragon.
Michelle Jalbert is a social coordinator and contributing freelancer for IGN.
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