NEWLY IDENTIFIED DINOSAUR SPECIES SPORTED A “STRIKING SAIL”

Remains unearthed on the Isle of Wight are from a new species of iguanodontian with long spines along its back that may have been used for displaying to potential mates

- By Will Newton

A team of scientists from the University of Portsmouth and London's Natural History Museum has identified a new species of dinosaur after reexamining 125-million-year-old fossils found on the Isle of Wight.

This is the third species of iguanodontian – a type of plant-eating reptile – found on the island in recent years. Unlike the other two, this new species exhibits elongated neural spines projecting up from the animal's vertebrate, likely supporting a “striking sail” along its back and tail. This may have been used in mating displays, say scientists involved in the study, published in August in Papers in Palaeontology.

Retired GP turned PhD student Dr Jeremy Lockwood, who identified the new species, named it