Dinosaur discovery in Spain expands known range of giant species
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Paleontologists in Spain discovered the remains of a 25-meter-long Diplodocus near El Castellar, in the province of Teruel.
The find marks the first time fossils of this dinosaur have been found in Europe, as previously all known specimens from that period came from the Morrison Formation in the western United States. Researchers examined 14 well-preserved tail vertebrae and associated bones, initially identified by a local resident who spotted bones on a mountainside.
The discovery suggests that large sauropod dinosaurs had a wider geographic distribution than scientists once believed. During the Late Jurassic period, around 150 million years ago, the Atlantic Ocean was narrower following the breakup of the supercontinent Pangaea, potentially allowing temporary land connections between North America and Europe. Scientists hypothesize that dinosaurs may have migrated between Newfoundland, Canada, and the Iberian Peninsula.
While the exact species remains unidentified, the Spanish fossils offer strong evidence of dinosaur movement between the continents, though more complete specimens are needed to confirm if this Diplodocus is a known or new species.
