Paleontologists in Thailand report the identification of a new Jurassic-period long-necked dinosaur species, Uragasaurus kalasinensis. Multiple outlets describe it as a plant-eating dinosaur that lived about 150 million years ago and is notable for an unusually long neck, which makes up roughly half of its total body length. The study attributes distinctive anatomical features to the fossil material, including unique bone structures and air cavities, referred to in one account as unusual “laminae” bones.
The fossils were found in Thailand’s Phu Kradung Formation, and coverage emphasizes that the discovery represents a first formal record of a mamenchisaurid dinosaur from mainland Southeast Asia, and specifically the first formally named mamenchisaurid from Thailand. One report also notes that the identification is based on limited remains, with the Scientific Reports study characterizing it as a new species identified from a single bone.
Together, the articles present the find as a new taxon within the long-necked group and a significant addition to the known Jurassic dinosaur fauna of the region.
