The Most Famous Fossil Discoveries Of All Time
Prior to their extinction 65 million years ago, dinosaurs were very successful creatures who completely dominated Earth for over 150 million years. They dominated the vast open spaces, the wild primordial oceans and even the air. That is why it is so important to study their remains. Studying fossils allows us to learn what made these magnificent creatures so successful.
Not all fossile discoveries are equal, however. Some are more important
than others. Today, we are going to look at some of the most famous
fossil discoveries on the planet.
1. Megalosaurus
Megalosaurus was the first dinosaur fossil to be discovered and
scientifically classified. It was discovered in a limestone quarry in
Oxfordshire, England in 1676. When it was discovered it was sent to the
first curator of the Ashmolean Museum, Robert Plot. He originally
misdiagnosed the fossil remains as that of a giant human, but
researchers now know that it was actually the thigh bone of
Megalosaurus.
2. Australopithecus
One of the most famous fossil discoveries of the last century is
probably the discovery of Australopithecus, also known as Lucy. This
hominid was discovered in Ethiopia's Afar Depression at Hadar. This
fossil is believed to be 3.2 million years old . It was discovered in
1974 by a team of archeologists that included Maurice Taieb, Tom Gray,
Donald Johanson and Yves Coppens. This species is believed to support
that theory that bipedal movement preceded the development of
intelligence in humans.
3. Stegosaurus
The first Stegosaurus fossils were found by Othniel Marsh in the summer
of 1877. He discovered them in Morrison, Colorado USA. Stegosaurus was a
plant eating quadruped that is most known for a series of plates and
tail spikes. This creature is believed to have lived over 150 million
years ago.
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