Remains of new species of duck-billed dinosaur found in Chile

Source: The post is based on the article “Remains of new species of duck-billed dinosaur found in Chile” published in The Hindu on 19th June 2023

What is the News?

Scientists from Chile have discovered a new species of duck-billed dinosaur in the far south of Chile.

What is a Duck-billed Dinosaur?

Duck-billed Dinosaur is a species of herbivorous dinosaur.

These were slender-looking dinosaurs, which could easily adopt a bipedal and quadrupedal posture to reach the vegetation at height and ground level.

They were common in North America, Asia and Europe during the Cretaceous period.

What is the significance of this discovery of Duck-billed Dinosaurs in Chile?

Duck-billed Dinosaurs were previously unknown in the Southern Hemisphere.

This discovery demonstrated that Chilean Patagonia served as a refuge for the duck-billed dinosaur which was common in North America, Asia and Europe during the Cretaceous period, from 145 to 66 million years ago