Meet Tromerosaurus solumons, a newly described tyrannosaur from Alberta, Canada, that could help paleontologists better understand the evolution of some of the most famous predators ever to walk the Earth!
Described in a 2026 scientific paper, this dinosaur lived approximately 77–76 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous. But what makes it particularly interesting is its unusual combination of anatomical characteristics associated with two major tyrannosaur groups: Albertosaurinae and Tyrannosaurinae.
So where does Tromerosaurus actually belong on the tyrannosaur family tree?
In this episode of Prehistoric Life, we’re exploring the discovery, examining its unusual anatomy, and investigating why different evolutionary analyses have produced different answers.
🦴 IN THIS EPISODE:
* The discovery of Tromerosaurus solumons
* What distinguishes albertosaurines from tyrannosaurines?
* How its jaw anatomy compares with *Gorgosaurus* and *Daspletosaurus*
* Why researchers disagree about its evolutionary placement
* What this discovery could mean for tyrannosaur evolution
* The Late Cretaceous ecosystem of Alberta, Canada
* Why new fossils can force paleontologists to rethink the dinosaur family tree
This discovery is a reminder that even some of the best-studied dinosaur groups still hold evolutionary mysteries. Sometimes, a new species doesn’t just add another name to the family tree — it makes us reconsider how the entire tree is arranged!
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What if one of the most extraordinary Tyrannosaurus rex fossils ever discovered could change what we know about the King of the Dinosaurs?
Meet “Rex Junior,” a remarkably preserved, sub-adult Tyrannosaurus rex discovered on the Zerbst Ranch near Newcastle, Wyoming. Unlike an ordinary dinosaur skeleton, this specimen may preserve extraordinary details of the animal’s external body covering.
And according to paleontologist Paul Sereno, there’s something particularly intriguing about it:
“We don’t see scales.”
Does this mean T. rex had feathers? Not so fast!
In this episode of Prehistoric Life, we’re exploring the incredible story of Rex Junior, what makes a dinosaur mummy so unusual, and why this fossil could be so important to our understanding of tyrannosaur integument.
🦖 IN THIS EPISODE:
* What exactly is a dinosaur mummy?
* Why Rex Junior’s three-dimensional preservation is so unusual
* What previous fossil discoveries tell us about T. rex skin
* Why the absence of visible scales is generating so much interest
* What feathered tyrannosaurs like Yutyrannus can tell us
* Could T. rex have had both scales and feathers?
* Why we need the scientific paper before drawing conclusions
The specimen is still being studied, and the available statements do *not* confirm that Rex Junior had feathers. With further research and a scientific publication expected to shed more light on the discovery, this is a mystery worth following.
Sometimes, the most exciting fossils aren’t the ones that give us answers. They’re the ones that make us ask entirely new questions.
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Could Tyrannosaurus rex have been warm-blooded? Scientists have finally measured the body temperature of the King of the Dinosaurs! 🦖🌡️
A new study published in Science Advances has revealed that T. rex maintained an estimated body temperature of 36.3°C (97.3°F) — comparable to the body temperatures of some modern mammals!
But how did scientists figure this out from fossils that are approximately 66 million years old?
The answer lies in T. rex’s teeth!
Researchers used a technique called clumped-isotope thermometry to analyze the chemical composition of fossilized tooth enamel. By examining three T. rex teeth from the Hell Creek Formation, they estimated an average body temperature of 36.3 ± 2.5°C.
The researchers also examined fossil crocodilian teeth from the same geological formation and found significantly lower average temperatures in those animals.
So, does this finally prove that T. rex was warm-blooded? And what could this mean for its metabolism, activity levels, and ability to live in colder environments?
In this episode, we’re exploring the new research and what it reveals about the physiology of the King of the Dinosaurs!
🦖 How scientists measured T. rex body temperature 🌡️ Why the estimated temperature is so important 🦷 How fossilized teeth preserve chemical evidence 🐊 How T. rex compared with ancient crocodilians ❄️ What this could mean for T. rex living in colder climates 🔬 What this discovery tells us about dinosaur physiology
📄 READ THE SCIENTIFIC PAPER:
Flores, R. J., Eagle, R. A., Trayler, R. B., et al. (2026).
For the first time, paleontologists may have found a trackway made by an adult Tyrannosaurus rex! 🦖👣
Discovered in the Hell Creek Formation of southwestern North Dakota, this remarkable trackway preserves four connected three-toed footprints, each roughly 1 meter (3 feet) long. The trackway stretches for about 7 meters (23 feet) and dates back approximately 66.5 million years.
The trackmaker is believed to have been an adult Tyrannosaurus rex based on the size and morphology of the footprints, their geological age and location, and the presence of T. rex fossils in the same formation. However, as with any fossil trackway, the identification is not absolutely certain.
What’s even more fascinating is what these footprints can tell us about how T. rex actually moved.
The trackway suggests the animal was walking at an estimated speed of around 1.5–2 meters per second — roughly 3.4–4.5 miles per hour.
Fossil bones can tell us what an animal looked like.
Fossil footprints can tell us what that animal was actually doing.
In this episode, we’re taking a look at this incredible trackway and what it can tell us about the movements of the King of the Dinosaurs!
🦖 Four connected footprints 👣 Roughly 3-foot-long tracks 🌎 Hell Creek Formation ⏳ About 66.5 million years old 🚶 Estimated walking speed of 3.4–4.5 mph 🔬 Why trackways are so important for understanding dinosaur behavior
A dinosaur we thought was exclusively North American has now been found in Spain! 🦕🇪🇸
Paleontologists have identified fossils from the La Tejería site near El Castellar in Teruel, Spain, as belonging to Diplodocus — making this the first confirmed evidence of Diplodocus outside North America!
The fossils include 14 tail vertebrae and several chevrons, dating to roughly 150 million years ago during the Late Jurassic. The animal is estimated to have reached around 25 meters (82 feet) in length.
But this discovery isn’t just about finding Diplodocus in a new country. It raises some fascinating questions about how dinosaurs were able to move between North America and Europe during the Late Jurassic, when the continents were already separating.
In this video, we’re taking a look at:
🦕 The discovery of Diplodocus in Spain 🦴 What fossils were actually found 🌎 How Diplodocus could have reached Europe 🗺️ What this tells us about Late Jurassic geography 🦖 The dinosaur ecosystems of Jurassic Spain 🔬 Why this discovery changes our understanding of Diplodocus’ distribution
📄 READ THE SCIENTIFIC PAPER:
Sánchez-Fenollosa, S., García-Cobeña, J., & Cobos, A. (2026). “Intercontinental evidence of the iconic genus Diplodocus Marsh, 1878 (Dinosauria, Sauropoda).” Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
Meet Kayrasaurus changliensis, a newly described therizinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Yixian Formation of western Liaoning, China.
In this episode of the Prehistoric Life Podcast, we’re taking a look at this bizarre new dinosaur and what its discovery can tell us about the evolution and ecology of early therizinosaurs.
The specimen is particularly interesting because it is nearly complete and skeletally immature, yet was already substantially larger than other therizinosaurs known from the same Jehol ecosystem. The researchers estimate that Kayrasaurus was at least 1.6 times larger than Beipiaosaurus inexpectus, the next-largest therizinosaur from the same ecosystem.
We’ll look at:
🦖 What Kayrasaurus changliensis was
🦴 Where it was discovered
🦷 Its unusual, extremely small and densely packed teeth
🦕 Its unusual neck vertebrae and hand claw anatomy
🌎 How it fits into the famous Jehol Biota
🍃 Possible differences in ecological niches between early therizinosaurs
🧬 What this discovery tells us about therizinosaur evolution
🔬 And why the researchers emphasize that more fossils and analyses are still needed to test these ideas
One of the really fascinating parts of this research is that the authors provisionally identify different ecological strategies among Jehol therizinosaurs. Beipiaosaurus and possibly Kayrasaurus show features associated with greater bite force and a more robust, less cursorial body plan, while Jianchangosaurus and Lingyuanosaurus show characteristics associated with greater cursoriality and forelimb-based foraging.
As always, it’s important to distinguish between what the fossils directly show and what researchers are interpreting from them. The authors specifically note that additional analyses and more complete specimens will be necessary to rigorously test and refine these ecological hypotheses.
🔬 READ THE SCIENTIFIC PAPER
The research was published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, a scientific journal specializing in paleontological systematics, including taxonomy, phylogenetics, functional morphology, evolution, and paleoecology.
“A new therizinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Jehol Biota and ecomorphological patterns among early therizinosaurians” — Liao et al. 2026
Journal: Journal of Systematic Palaeontology
Volume: 24
Issue: 2
Article: 2710287
DOI: 10.1080/14772019.2026.2710287
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