A leg bone fragment found in Morocco has provided new evidence for scientists studying the evolution of cerapodans, a group of herbivorous dinosaurs that dominated Earth’s ecosystems for tens of millions of years. The discovery highlights the importance of Morocco as a key location for understanding dinosaur evolution.
The cerapodans were a large group of dinosaurs that included important herbivores during the Cretaceous Period. However, very few of their fossils have been found, making this latest discovery significant. The leg bone fragment from Morocco is around 145 million years old and provides the oldest evidence of the cerapodans found anywhere on Earth.
According to Dr. Susannah Maidment, who led the research into the fossil, it highlights the importance of Morocco for understanding dinosaur evolution. “We’ve already found the world’s oldest ankylosaur and one of the oldest stegosaurs from this area,” she said. “It looks like the dinosaurs here are among the earliest members that we know of from some key clades.”
The Middle Jurassic period, when the cerapodans first evolved, was a time of rapid climate change and sea-level rise in southern Africa and Antarctica. This led to a lack of fossils from land-based animals during this time, making it difficult for scientists to study.
However, the discovery of the leg bone fragment from Morocco suggests that it was an important time of transition for life on Earth. The cerapodans evolved from small two-legged dinosaurs like Hypsilophodon and eventually became larger, with footprints found in countries including Morocco.
The fossil also has significant cultural value, as it is the first specimen added to the newly established fossil collection of the University Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah (USMBA) in Fes. The team hopes that this discovery will help develop palaeontology in North Africa and lead to more home-grown research opportunities.
The researchers are also setting up a fossil preparation lab in Morocco, which will allow them to prepare and study fossils without relying on international collaborations. This initiative aims to promote palaeontology in the region and provide new opportunities for scientists to work with local fossils.
Source: https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2025/march/worlds-oldest-known-cerapodan-dinosaur-discovered-morocco.html