Nine-Meter Jurassic Dinosaur Discovered in Kyrgyzstan
Paleontologists have uncovered a new species of predatory dinosaur in the mountainous desert region of Kyrgyzstan, marking a significant find in the study of Jurassic-era creatures.
According to a report published in the Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society (ZJLS), a team of researchers from the Paleontological Museum in Munich, Germany, along with Kyrgyz colleagues, made this discovery near the city of Tash-Kumyr in western Kyrgyzstan. The newly identified species, named Alpkarakush kyrgyzicus, is the first theropod dinosaur discovered in the country.
The dinosaur’s name was inspired by the mythological giant bird Alpkarakush from the Kyrgyz epic Manas. The remains of the lizard were extracted from deposits dating back to the Middle Jurassic period, around 165 million years ago.
Fossil analysis revealed that the dinosaur measured approximately nine meters in length and possessed distinctive bony protrusions above its eye sockets, resembling “eyebrows.”
Paleontologists have classified Alpkarakush kyrgyzicus as part of the metriacanthosaurid family, which is closely related to other large predatory dinosaurs from East Asia. They also theorize that the metriacanthosaurids and other important theropod groups may have originated in Southeast Asia and spread to other parts of the world, including Central Asia and Europe.
