Fossil Quality And Naming Dinosaurs

Main Category: Biology / Biochemistry
Article Date: 18 Sep 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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New dinosaurs are found every week or so - but are all these new species valid or not?

This is part of a wider question that is critical to all work on biodiversity and conservation as well - can we be sure we know what the species are that we must conserve?

A new study shows that the quality of specimens used by palaeontologists in naming new species of dinosaurs has improved steadily since the first dinosaur was named in 1824; in 1960, there was a cross-over from the use of mainly incomplete to mainly substantial to complete specimens.

So the new species probably are mostly new.

Royal Society journal Biology Letters

Biology Letters publishes short, innovative and cutting-edge research articles and opinion pieces accessible to scientists from across the biological sciences. The journal is characterised by stringent peer-review, rapid publication and broad dissemination of succinct high-quality research communications.

Biology Letters