New studies show that Britain was once literally teeming with dinosaurs. Over 100 species of dinosaur once roamed Britain, meaning the country had one of the most diverse concentration of dinosaurs on the planet.
It was also the British who discovered dinosaurs. In the 1820s, the British scientist Gideon Mantell discovered strange fossils in a quarry in Cuckfield, Sussex. Many strange fossils and bones were found around the world but were often dismissed as nothing more than the remains of rhinoceros or elephants, as some of Mantell's fossils were.
But Mantell was the first person to work out that they were the remains of reptiles that lived long ago, and the British scientist Richard Owen coined the term "dinosaur" in 1842.
The first dinosaur in the world to be identified was a megalosaurus found in Oxfordshire which was named in 1824.
Teeming with dinosaurs: how Britain was real Jurassic Park
By Richard Gray and Jasper Copping
13/04/2008
Daily Mail
In the film, the scene of all the action was a small island off the coast of South America. But a new study has revealed that Britain was the real Jurassic Park.
More than 100 species of dinosaur once roamed the land, one of the most diverse concentrations in the world.
At least 108 dinosaur species have been found in Britain, meaning Britain had one of the most diverse concentrations of dinosaurs in the world, but there may be many more still undiscovered
Britain was a crucial crossroads for creatures moving between North America and Eurasia - the landmass that includes Europe and Asia - when they were joined.
Britain formed part of the last "land bridge" between the two continents before they finally split apart 65 million years ago and experts believe it was one of the few places where dinosaurs from both sides would have existed together.
Researchers also found that a significant number of dinosaur species originated in Britain, making it a key area for their evolution.
The study was conducted by academics from the University of Portsmouth who have carried out the most exhaustive survey of fossil records from Britain, starting with the first dinosaur in the world to be identified - a megalosaurus, named in 1824 from fossils discovered in Oxfordshire.
Since then, thousands more fossils have been found throughout Britain, with particular clusters on the coast of East Sussex, the Isle of Wight, around Bristol, and in Oxfordshire. This has enabled
researchers to chronicle, for the first time, every known species and genus of the creatures that thrived here between 200 million and 65 million years ago.
Dr David Martill, a reader in palaeobiology and one of the study's authors, said: "What was a surprise to us was just how diverse the British dinosaur population was, and that we are still getting new species being discovered.
"The real thrill is that we have had people searching for dinosaur fossils in the UK for around 200 years. But if we are still finding new species now, then the diversity must have been terrific."
The team compared fossils from Britain with those from Asia, America and Africa, finding similarities to support their hypothesis that Britain was a thoroughfare for migrating dinosaurs as well as home to a rich native population.
Dr Martill added: "We're finding quite a strong link between China, North America and even Africa.
At the time there was a land passage to get between the continents and we seem to have ended up with such a diverse assembly because dinosaurs from both sides mixed here in the middle."
The team, whose work is published this week by the Geological Society of London, has established that at least 108 dinosaur species have been found in Britain, but believes there may be many more still undiscovered.
They intend to update their dinosaur chronicle as new fossils are found. Among those now thought to have originated in Britain are relatives of the stegosaurus, as well the megalosaurus, a large meat-eater thought to have been ancestral to the tyrannosaurs.
Dr Darren Naish, an honorary researcher in palaeobiology and co-author of the report, said: "Other countries may have more and/or better dinosaur fossils but we have the longest record of research and, for a small country, we have a very rich dinosaur record.
"We seem to have had many early appearances of groups of dinosaurs, and this suggests we were an important place in their evolution.
"Britain has moved around a lot in its position in relation to the continents, and was in the middle of the northern super-continent during the Jurassic period before it later broke in half into North America and Eurasia.
"Britain seems to have been at the crossroads in the middle, so any dinosaurs shared between North America and Eurasia must have gone through what is now the UK."
Angela Milner, associate keeper of palaeontology at the Natural History Museum in London, said: "Dinosaurs weren't a great American invention, as some people like to think.
"The history of dinosaurs began in England."
Megalosaurus
Lived here during the middle Jurassic period, 159 to 180 million years ago.
It was 10ft long and weighed about a ton.
Once the largest meat-eater on the planet, it was an early ancestor of the tyrannosaurs.
Reached speeds up to 40mph.
First found in Oxfordshire.
Xenposeidon
Early Cretaceous.
Up to 65ft long, 8.2 tons.
A long-necked herbivore.
Found near Hastings, East Sussex, in the 1890s, but not identified until last year.
Iguanadon
Early Cretaceous period, 98-144 million years ago.
32ft long and 3.3 tons.
Herbivores, they probably had to eat 66lb of plant material a day just to stay alive.
Their only means of defence was a spike-like thumb.
Found in Cuckfield, West Sussex.
Eotyrannus
Early Cretaceous.
13ft long, 220lbs.
Probably an ancestor of T. rex, it was a carnivore with a large, long-jawed head and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.
Found near Newport, on the Isle of Wight.
Cetiosaurus
Middle Jurassic.
60ft long, 10 tons.
A ponderous herbivore from the same family as the diplodocus.
Found on Isle of Wight.
dailymail.co.uk
It was also the British who discovered dinosaurs. In the 1820s, the British scientist Gideon Mantell discovered strange fossils in a quarry in Cuckfield, Sussex. Many strange fossils and bones were found around the world but were often dismissed as nothing more than the remains of rhinoceros or elephants, as some of Mantell's fossils were.
But Mantell was the first person to work out that they were the remains of reptiles that lived long ago, and the British scientist Richard Owen coined the term "dinosaur" in 1842.
The first dinosaur in the world to be identified was a megalosaurus found in Oxfordshire which was named in 1824.
Teeming with dinosaurs: how Britain was real Jurassic Park
By Richard Gray and Jasper Copping
13/04/2008
Daily Mail
In the film, the scene of all the action was a small island off the coast of South America. But a new study has revealed that Britain was the real Jurassic Park.
More than 100 species of dinosaur once roamed the land, one of the most diverse concentrations in the world.
At least 108 dinosaur species have been found in Britain, meaning Britain had one of the most diverse concentrations of dinosaurs in the world, but there may be many more still undiscovered
Britain was a crucial crossroads for creatures moving between North America and Eurasia - the landmass that includes Europe and Asia - when they were joined.
Britain formed part of the last "land bridge" between the two continents before they finally split apart 65 million years ago and experts believe it was one of the few places where dinosaurs from both sides would have existed together.
Researchers also found that a significant number of dinosaur species originated in Britain, making it a key area for their evolution.
The study was conducted by academics from the University of Portsmouth who have carried out the most exhaustive survey of fossil records from Britain, starting with the first dinosaur in the world to be identified - a megalosaurus, named in 1824 from fossils discovered in Oxfordshire.
Since then, thousands more fossils have been found throughout Britain, with particular clusters on the coast of East Sussex, the Isle of Wight, around Bristol, and in Oxfordshire. This has enabled
researchers to chronicle, for the first time, every known species and genus of the creatures that thrived here between 200 million and 65 million years ago.
Dr David Martill, a reader in palaeobiology and one of the study's authors, said: "What was a surprise to us was just how diverse the British dinosaur population was, and that we are still getting new species being discovered.
"The real thrill is that we have had people searching for dinosaur fossils in the UK for around 200 years. But if we are still finding new species now, then the diversity must have been terrific."
The team compared fossils from Britain with those from Asia, America and Africa, finding similarities to support their hypothesis that Britain was a thoroughfare for migrating dinosaurs as well as home to a rich native population.
Dr Martill added: "We're finding quite a strong link between China, North America and even Africa.
At the time there was a land passage to get between the continents and we seem to have ended up with such a diverse assembly because dinosaurs from both sides mixed here in the middle."
The team, whose work is published this week by the Geological Society of London, has established that at least 108 dinosaur species have been found in Britain, but believes there may be many more still undiscovered.
They intend to update their dinosaur chronicle as new fossils are found. Among those now thought to have originated in Britain are relatives of the stegosaurus, as well the megalosaurus, a large meat-eater thought to have been ancestral to the tyrannosaurs.
Dr Darren Naish, an honorary researcher in palaeobiology and co-author of the report, said: "Other countries may have more and/or better dinosaur fossils but we have the longest record of research and, for a small country, we have a very rich dinosaur record.
"We seem to have had many early appearances of groups of dinosaurs, and this suggests we were an important place in their evolution.
"Britain has moved around a lot in its position in relation to the continents, and was in the middle of the northern super-continent during the Jurassic period before it later broke in half into North America and Eurasia.
"Britain seems to have been at the crossroads in the middle, so any dinosaurs shared between North America and Eurasia must have gone through what is now the UK."
Angela Milner, associate keeper of palaeontology at the Natural History Museum in London, said: "Dinosaurs weren't a great American invention, as some people like to think.
"The history of dinosaurs began in England."
Megalosaurus
Lived here during the middle Jurassic period, 159 to 180 million years ago.
It was 10ft long and weighed about a ton.
Once the largest meat-eater on the planet, it was an early ancestor of the tyrannosaurs.
Reached speeds up to 40mph.
First found in Oxfordshire.
Xenposeidon
Early Cretaceous.
Up to 65ft long, 8.2 tons.
A long-necked herbivore.
Found near Hastings, East Sussex, in the 1890s, but not identified until last year.
Iguanadon
Early Cretaceous period, 98-144 million years ago.
32ft long and 3.3 tons.
Herbivores, they probably had to eat 66lb of plant material a day just to stay alive.
Their only means of defence was a spike-like thumb.
Found in Cuckfield, West Sussex.
Eotyrannus
Early Cretaceous.
13ft long, 220lbs.
Probably an ancestor of T. rex, it was a carnivore with a large, long-jawed head and a mouth full of razor-sharp teeth.
Found near Newport, on the Isle of Wight.
Cetiosaurus
Middle Jurassic.
60ft long, 10 tons.
A ponderous herbivore from the same family as the diplodocus.
Found on Isle of Wight.
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