Overview
- The CONICET-led team, in a study published Wednesday in Scientific Reports, named Paleoteius lakui from the Allen Formation in Río Negro, Argentina.
- Researchers recovered an exceptionally preserved specimen with parts of the skull, spine, and limbs, then used micro-CT scans to create high-resolution 3D models without damaging the bones.
- Phylogenetic analyses place the animal within Scincomorpha, indicating these lizards lived in South America during the Late Cretaceous.
- The fossil represents a tiny terrestrial insect-eater about 15 centimeters long, with a heavily ornamented skull and many fine, simple teeth.
- Scientists note small lizard fossils are rare in the southern hemisphere—fewer than a dozen Mesozoic species are known—so this find fills a major gap and encourages new fieldwork using CNEA imaging and CCAD/UNC computing resources.