Fossil found at State Museum confirmed as new dinosaur

ABC27.com: Fossil found at State Museum confirmed as new dinosaur

HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) - Scientists at the Smithsonian Institution have confirmed that a fossil discovered at The State Museum of Pennsylvania is the skull of a previously-unknown dinosaur.

The dinosaur, now known as Daemonosaurus chauliodous, was found in 2004 in a large mudstone block from New Mexico that contained other fossils, museum officials said.

The mudstone block, on loan from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History, was part of a State Museum exhibit that allowed visitors to see a technician working to uncover dinosaur remains.

The specimen was sent back to the Carnegie Museum and eventually the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History for additional study. The confirmation findings were announced by the Smithsonian last month.

Daemonosaurus chauliodous roamed the Earth during the Late Triassic period more than 200 million years ago.

Scientists at the Smithsonian said the discovery not only revealed a new species, but also an evolutionary link between two groups of dinosaurs: the early predatory species of the early Late Triassic and later theropods such as the Tyrannosaurus rex.

The name Daemonosaurus is based on the Greek words "daimon," or evil spirit, and "sauros" meaning lizard or reptile. Chauliodus is derived from the Greek word for "buck-toothed" and refers to the dinosaur's big slanted front teeth.