Since the 1960s, the clay pit in Klein Lehmhagen near the small town of Grimmen in Vorpommern has been known for its numerous fossils, some of which are magnificently preserved: The University of Greifswald’s dinosaur, Emausaurus ernsti [de], also comes from this site. Until the 1990s, clay was mined in the pit and fired to make expanded clay. In the meantime, the pit has filled up with water. This pit is particularly interesting for palaeontologists, as sediments from the early Jurassic period (about 180 million years ago) are exposed here, i.e. easily accessible. Very few dinosaurs from Europe are known from this time. With luck and experience, remains of extinct creatures can still be recovered from the clay pit today. This is what happened in 2017 when Jörg Ansorge found a new dinosaur’s remains.
The study provides insights into the evolution of dinosaurs and their environment in the Lower Jurassic, a time when large parts of Europe were under water. At this time, an important part of the evolutionary history of the four-legged, armoured and later often armed to the teeth herbivores, from the Thyreophora group, took place. In the course of their evolution, these animals produced huge, well-known representatives such as the Stegosaurus and Ankylosaurus.
The small, armoured herbivore Emausaurus ernsti also comes from the clay pit near Klein Lehmhagen and is the most complete former terrestrial inhabitant of this locality to date. A long-necked dinosaur, a so-called sauropod, has also already been identified. The new fossil, about 15 centimetres in size, was compared with the armour plates of Emausaurus and other possible relatives, including computed tomography studies to analyse invisible, internal structures.
Through comparisons with close relatives, the researchers came to the conclusion that the new find is a plate of armour that once protruded from the body, and which was probably covered with keratin whilst the animal was alive - similar to the horns of today's cows - and sat on the neck or shoulder area of a relatively large representative.
The comparative studies of an armour plate from Emausaurus also gave reason to believe that, despite the animal's relatively small body size of about 2 metres, it may have been an almost adult animal. In addition, the researchers found previously undiscovered cavities in this very armour plate, which presumably served to supply blood and nutrients to the formerly keratinous coating. Despite many similarities, however, the new armour plate could not be unequivocally assigned to Emausaurus.
Further information
Schade, M., Ansorge, J. New thyreophoran dinosaur material from the Early Jurassic of northeastern Germany. PalZ (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12542-022-00605-x
Institute of Geography and Geology at the University of Greifswald
Greifswald Geological Collections - Faculty - University of Greifswald [de]
Contact at the University of Greifswald
Marco Schade
Institute of Geography and Geology
Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn Straße 17 A, 17489 Greifswald
Tel.: +49 3834 420 4598
marco.schadestud.uni-greifswaldde