With each new find, such as the dinosaur leg recently unearthed in North Dakota, scientists build a more colourful picture of the ancient reptiles
Although they became extinct 66m years ago, dinosaurs are always news. The latest manifestation of that is the media shower generated by the discovery of the perfectly preserved leg, including remnants of skin, of a dinosaur in North Dakota.
It is suggested that this dinosaur, discovered at the Tanis fossil site, died on the very day the asteroid that caused the mass extinction of all the dinosaurs struck the Earth. It sounds almost too good to be true, but should make for a fascinating TV documentary next week, Dinosaurs: The Final Days, presented by Sir David Attenborough, naturally.
Dr Dave Hone is a senior lecturer at Queen Mary University of London, specialising in dinosaurs and pterosaurs. He blogs at Archosaur Musings, and presents the Terrible Lizards podcast. His latest book is The Future of Dinosaurs
