In the lab, Pol and his team were thrilled to discover that the entire back end of the dinosaur Koleken was preserved in perfect articulation. Part of the spine, hips, and complete legs were all encased together, suggesting that the dinosaur was buried and preserved before its body decayed and parts spread.
However, despite these remarkable findings, it was not immediately clear that Koleken was a new dinosaur. In 1985, paleontologists had already named a well-known carnivore from the same geologic formation, Carnotaurus.
Carnotaurus, known for its distinct triangular horns above each eye, quickly gained fame in the dinosaur world. But upon closer examination, Pol and his team did not find any evidence of horns or other Carnotaurus characteristics in the bones they had recovered. This discovery suggested that the carnivore they had uncovered belonged to a previously unknown species.
Technicians further studied Koleken’s vertebrae and femur fossils, revealing fascinating insights into the dinosaur’s anatomy. Mauricio Cerroni, a paleontologist at the Bernardino Rivadavia Natural Science Argentine Museum, shared his support for the findings of Pol and his colleagues, noting the compelling arguments presented in the new study.
