MEXICO CITY - A team of archaeologists have discovered the
fossilized remains of a 72 million-year-old dinosaur tail in a
desert in northern Mexico, the country's National Institute for
Anthropology and History (INAH) said on Monday.
Apart from being unusually well preserved, the 5 meter (16 foot)
tail was the first ever found in Mexico, said Francisco Aguilar,
INAH's director in the border state of Coahuila.
The team, made up of archaeologists and students from INAH and the
National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), identified the
fossil as a hadrosaur, or duck-billed dinosaur.
The tail, found near the small town of General Cepeda, likely made
up half the dinosaur's length, Aguilar said.
Archaeologists found the 50 vertebrae of the tail completely intact
after spending 20 days in the desert slowly lifting a sedimentary
rock covering the creature's bones.
Strewn around the tail were other fossilized bones, including one
of the dinosaur's hips, INAH said.
Dinosaur tail finds are relatively rare, according to INAH. The new
discovery could further understanding of the hadrosaur family and
aid research on diseases that afflicted dinosaur bones, which
resembled those of humans, Aguilar said.
Scientists have already determined that dinosaurs suffered from
tumors and arthritis, for example.
Dinosaur remains have been found in many parts of the state of
Coahuila, in addition to Mexico's other northern desert states.
"We have a very rich history of paleontology," Aguilar said.
He noted that during the Cretaceous period, which ended about 65
million years ago, much of what is now central northern Mexico was
on the coast. This has enabled researchers to unearth remains of
both marine and land-based dinosaurs.
The presence of the remains was reported to INAH by locals in June
2012. After initial inspections, excavation began earlier this
month. The remains of the tail will be transferred to General
Cepeda for cleaning and further investigation.
