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Discovery of Infernogallus jamesi dinosaur

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2026-10-31 10:07 UTC → 2026-11-01 09:40 UTC · added ~~removed~~

Paleontologists have identified a new dinosaur species, Infernogallus jamesi, discovered in the Hell Creek Formation. Dating back approximately 66 million years to the Cretaceous period, the specimen suggests that certain dinosaurs may have specialized in eating fruit. Initial findings described a 12 kilogram dinosaur with a unique skull anatomy and a toothless beak similar to modern parrots. Researchers used CT scans to reveal jaw muscles adapted for processing fleshy fruit pulp, providing insight into how non-avian dinosaurs utilized the expansion of flowering plants. A study published in Nature Communications highlights that the creature, which weighed about 11.3 to 12 kilograms, possessed a head resembling a parrot and a body roughly the size of an emu or cassowary. Subsequent details clarified that the species, which measured about 1.5 meters in length, is a frugivorous chicken dinosaur belonging to the theropod ~~family.~~ family, specifically the caenagnathid group. Fossils, including a nearly complete skeleton and jaw bones, were found across Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Lead author Greg Funston of Stony Brook University noted that the discovery demonstrates the high adaptability of theropods within the subtropical coastal ecosystems they inhabited, where they lived alongside species such as Tyrannosaurus and Triceratops. Nicknamed the “hell chicken,” the species is considered the first known frugivore. While the fossils do not explicitly show feathers, researchers believe the species was likely covered in them, consistent with its close relatives.

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