The Australian outback town of Boulia, Queensland, might be known for its iconic camel races, but new research from the University of New England (UNE) reveals it was once home to something far more significant.
Palaeontologists have discovered and described a rare skull belonging to the armoured dinosaur, Kunbarrasaurus from the Toolebuc Formation at Boulia. Roughly the size of two fists, the skull (which preserves most of the palate) provides scientists with valuable information about how these ancient creatures once lived.
This is just the second ankylosaur skull ever discovered in Australia, and the first from the Toolebuc Formation at Boulia.
“This is just the second ankylosaur skull ever discovered in Australia, and the first from the Toolebuc Formation at Boulia,” says UNE PhD candidate Timothy Frauenfelder, who led the project.
“This discovery is significant as it shows that Kunbarrasaurus was geographically and temporally more widespread than originally thought. The other Kunbarrasaurus specimen was found about 550 kilometres away in Richmond, Queensland, and was five to 10 million years younger.”
To examine the skull, Timothy created a 3D digital model from scans generated at the Australian Synchrotron in Melbourne, Victoria, run by the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANTSO).
A particle accelerator the size of a football field, the Synchrotron shoots high-powered x-rays that penetrate the rock, allowing the research team to virtually peek inside.
“By scanning it, I can remove all of the bones digitally while keeping the original fossil intact so that it can continue to be preserved into the future,” says Timothy.
“In our case, we could see how far some of the bones extended, how they associate with each other, and discovered several teeth 'floating' around inside the rock.”
They also noticed the internal airways were different from most other ankylosaurs, revealing some interesting observations about the Kunbarrsaurus’ sense of smell.
“In all land vertebrates, there are holes that perforate the palate, marking the exit point where the airways leave the skull,” says Timothy.
“In most ankylosaurs, these holes are long, extending towards the front of the snout, and are sometimes even divided into front and back openings. Those attributes are thought to increase the animal’s sense of smell. However, in this specimen, the holes are farther back and undivided, telling us that Kunbarrsaurus may not have had as good a sense of smell compared to later ankylosaurs.”
Timothy’s supervisor and collaborator on the project, Dr Nicolas Campione, says this is just another piece of a larger puzzle.
There is still so much we don’t know about the diversity of Australian dinosaurs, but every specimen helps.
“Ankylosaur dinosaurs are famous for being spectacularly armoured, often sporting large tail clubs,” says the Senior Lecturer in Palaeontology.
"Those types of ankylosaurs are well-known from the northern hemisphere, like North America and China, however, our research, along with colleagues in South America and Africa, reveals a much older origin for these dinosaurs, one that may have started in the south.
"There is still so much we don’t know about the diversity of Australian dinosaurs, but every specimen helps."
This research was conducted as part of the University of New England’s Palaeoscience Research Centre and was funded by the Australian Research Council and ANSTO.
