“Fossil unearthed in New Mexico years ago is identified as older, more primitive relative of T. rex”
by Susan Montoya Bryan, AP News
January 11, 2024
The identification of the new subspecies, Tyrannosaurus mcraeensis, which predated T. rex by seven million years, came through a meticulous reexamination of the jaw and other pieces of the skull that were collected over years at the Sierra County, New Mexico, site where the fossil was initially discovered.
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Although this report does not provide details of the discovery or the scientific research that led to the precursor dinosaur’s identification, the following article provides that backstory.
“New dinosaur named, found 30 years ago near Elephant Butte”
by Elva K. Österreich, Las Cruces Bulletin
January 11, 2024
When several pieces of a skull of Tyrannosaurus mcraeensis were found on the east side of Elephant Butte Reservoir in 1983 by members of the Rio Grande Sailing Club out of Las Cruces, it was thought to be part of a Tyrannosaurus rex. A sharp-eyed student paleontologist prompted the re-examination.
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