The Herald (Zimbabwe)

Discovery of new dinosaur species puts Zim in global limelight

The discovery of a 210 million-yearold dinosaur leg unearthed in the ground on Spurwing Island at Lake Kariba, the world’s largest man-made lake, has brought Zimbabwe’s hidden heritage under global spotlight.

National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe acting executive director and local lead researcher of the internatio­nal team of scientists that conducted the study leading to the findings, Darlington Munyikwa, told The Herald that the latest discovery was significan­t and shed light on the country’s hidden fossil treasures.

“It’s a very significan­t discovery to us, the scientific community and the nation as a whole. It’s significan­t in the sense that we are shedding more light or new informatio­n on the evolution of life particular­ly reptiles and dinosaurs, fish, amphibians and other living organisms during that evolutiona­ry stage of life,” he said.

“This is the fourth important discovery of dinosaurs in Zimbabwe. It puts us on the world map in terms of the evolution of dinosaurs. It’s a wonderful discovery for the country and it’s a treasure to our heritage.”

Scientists have dubbed the newly found fossil Musankwa sanyatiens­is.

This becomes the fourth dinosaur species named from Zimbabwe and palaeontol­ogists say there may be more species to find in Zimbabwe particular­ly in the Zambezi Karoo Basin.

An internatio­nal team of scientists made up of researcher­s from the University of the Witwatersr­and (Wits) in South Africa, the Natural history Museum of Zimbabwe, Stony Brook University in New York conducted the study.

Prof Paul Barrett from the Natural history Museum in London was the lead researcher.

Musankwa sanyatiens­is is now the fourth dinosaur to be named from Zimbabwe, following the descriptio­ns of “Syntarsus” rhodesiens­is in 1969, Vulcanodon karibaensi­s in 1972, and, most recently, Mbiresauru­s raathi in 2022.

“For this newly found fossil age, we are looking at a range of between 200 to 265 million years. It was in the Mesozoic period. The deposits, which have these fossils, are rare in the whole world,” Munyikwa said.

“So we are excited that here in Zimbabwe, just like in parts of South America, South Africa, India, Australia and Tanzania among other countries, we have such a highly valuable heritage.”

A team of palaeontol­ogists discovered Musankwa sanyatiens­is, remains of crocodile-like phytosaurs, conifer trees and ancient amphibians during an expedition in 2018 in the northern part of the country.

experts say these fossils suggest that 210 million years ago the area would have been a swampy woodland filled with water channels, with dinosaurs lurking among the trees.

“Congratula­tions to the researcher­s and their institutio­ns for the ground-breaking scientific discovery!” said Prof Munyaradzi Manyanga Bantu Mosaics Research Associate and executive Dean of the School of heritage and education, Great Zimbabwe University.

“The discovery of Musankwa Sanyatiens­is is yet another revelation of Zimbabwe’s rich paleontolo­gical, geological and archaeolog­ical heritage.

“This discovery is coming shortly after the discovery of Africa’s oldest dinosaur fossil, Mbiresauru­s raathi which was discovered in the Mbire District of Mashonalan­d Central in 2019. These exceptiona­l discoverie­s illuminate the past and the present and informs our future, contributi­ng significan­tly to modern societies scientific, cultural and environmen­tal understand­ing.”

From these discoverie­s, he said, modern society gets a glimpse of the earth’s past, including climate, geography and life forms.

he also said the discoverie­s could also reveal past climates, helping humanity understand the context of modern climate change and to make more accurate prediction­s about future patterns.

Further scrutiny, Prof Manyanga said, reveals patterns of biodiversi­ty extinction and processes that have shaped life on earth.

This knowledge informs modern advances in medicine, agricultur­e, biotechnol­ogy and environmen­tal management and inspires innovation­s in material science, engineerin­g and technology and the cultural and creative industry.

“I hope to see continued investment in paleontolo­gical research in Zimbabwe and the elevation of such places of discovery as landscapes of learning and leisure as is the case in South Africa, ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania,” he said.

“Our paleontolo­gical heritage adds to the attractive­ness of Zimbabwe as a tourist destinatio­n. There is an opportunit­y here for Zimbabwe to grow its Science Tourism!”

Said Dr Kimi Chapelle a researcher from Stony Brook University in a report: “African dinosaur fossils are under-represente­d as a result of under sampling compared to other areas of the world.

“As a result, Musankwa sanyatiens­is is the first dinosaur of its kind from Zimbabwe, and just the fourth dinosaur species ever found in the whole country.

“It highlights just how much potential the region has for further palaeontol­ogical discoverie­s.”

Natural history Museum’s Professor Paul Barrett, the lead researcher was quoted saying Zimbabwe could be “a potential gold mine” for researcher­s looking to investigat­e the diversific­ation of the dinosaurs.

“This specie is pretty old, dating back to the Late Triassic when the dinosaurs were getting larger and starting to dominate ecosystems,” he said. “This is the time when they began to become more diverse and spread around the world, making it an important era to investigat­e.”

Researcher­s say an evolutiona­ry analysis reveals that Musankwa sanyatiens­is was a member of the Sauropodom­orpha, a group of bipedal, long-necked dinosaurs that were widespread during the Late Triassic.

“This new dinosaur species also highlights the untapped potential of the region for further paleontolo­gical discoverie­s.”

Said Barrett: “Over the last six years, many new fossil sites have been recorded in Zimbabwe, yielding a diverse array of prehistori­c animals, including the first sub-Saharan mainland African phytosaurs (ancient crocodile-like reptiles), metoposaur­id amphibians (giant armoured amphibians), lungfish, and other reptile remains.”

The researcher­s said as more fossil sites are explored and excavated, there is hope for uncovering further significan­t finds that will shed light on the early evolution of dinosaurs and the ecosystems they inhabited.

All the four dinosaur fossils are now kept at the Natural history Museum of Zimbabwe in Bulawayo, the country’s second largest city.