Overview
- Argentina’s CONICET team identified the new species as Huayracursor jaguensis after excavating it at about 3,000 meters in La Rioja, naming it for the local winds and the nearby village of Jagüé.
- Uranium/stratigraphic dating places the fossil at 230–225 million years old, ranking it among the oldest known dinosaurs, with results published in Nature.
- The animal measured roughly two meters and about 18 kilograms, exceeding many contemporaries and showing elongated neck vertebrae and a robust build linked to early sauropodomorphs.
- Preservation includes parts of the skull, a complete vertebral column through the tail, and nearly complete fore and hind limbs, providing an exceptional reference for anatomy.
- The team reports geological evidence for a distinct northern Andean Triassic basin and plans expanded fieldwork to search for additional early vertebrate fossils.