Joan Wiffen's Theropod
Encyclopedia
Joan Wiffen's Theropod is a currently unnamed dinosaur that was found by Joan Wiffen
in Cretaceous
rocks of New Zealand
. It is known from one single tail vertebra, and is probably a type of Allosaur, because this is what the tail vertebra seems to resemble most. Unless a better collection of fossils is discovered, this dinosaur shall remain unnamed because we do not know whether it is a new species, or an already discovered that came to New Zealand.
's Theropod was approximately four to five meters in length (maximum length of 15 feet) long, and like all Theropods (beside Therizinosaurus
) it would have been bipedal and carnivorous. It's main food source would come from the small hypsilophodont
that lived at the same place as it, and the titanosaur
and ankylosaurs. Its most probable predator would have been the Moanasaurus
, one of the largest mosasaurs ever discovered.
's Theropod is known from a single tail vertebra found by Joan Wiffen
in the Mangahouanga Stream. Because of the lack of fossils, it is hard to determine what species of dinosaur is, although Wiffen
determined that it probably came from a Megalosaur, although in reality the tail bone is more like that of an allosaur, like the Australia
n dinosaur Australovenator
. It shall not be given an official binomial name until more about its classification is known.
owes its name to the group Theropoda
, a group of bipedal dinosaurs that were all carnivorous. This group includes Allosaurus
, Megalosaurus
and most famously, Tyrannosaurus
rex, plus many more.
's Sauropod and an unidentified type of pterosaur
. Apart from this, not much is known.
's Theropod has been mentioned in the documentary The Lost Dinosaurs of New Zealand]], where it was said that it was "Possibly a megalosaur", although it has now been shown that this is probably not the case, as the one bone that was found of this creature looks more like the tail vertebra of an allosaur than a megalosaur. The description of Joan Wiffen
's Theropod is similar to the depiction of the polar allosaurs or dwarf allosaurs (Australovenator
) in the show Walking with Dinosaurs
, and it is possible that Joan Wiffen
's Theropod is actually a different species of Australovenator
, which, as its name suggests, lived in Australia at approximately the same time of Joan Wiffen
's Theropod.
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
in Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
rocks of New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
. It is known from one single tail vertebra, and is probably a type of Allosaur, because this is what the tail vertebra seems to resemble most. Unless a better collection of fossils is discovered, this dinosaur shall remain unnamed because we do not know whether it is a new species, or an already discovered that came to New Zealand.
Description
Joan WiffenJoan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod was approximately four to five meters in length (maximum length of 15 feet) long, and like all Theropods (beside Therizinosaurus
Therizinosaurus
Therizinosaurus is a genus of very large theropod dinosaur. Therizinosaurus lived in the late Cretaceous Period , and was one of the last and largest representatives of its unique group, the Therizinosauria...
) it would have been bipedal and carnivorous. It's main food source would come from the small hypsilophodont
Hypsilophodont
Hypsilophodonts were small ornithopod dinosaurs, regarded as fast, herbivorous bipeds on the order of 1–2 meters long . They are known from Asia, Australia, Europe, New Zealand, North America, and South America, from rocks of Middle Jurassic to late Cretaceous age...
that lived at the same place as it, and the titanosaur
Titanosaur
Titanosaurs were a diverse group of sauropod dinosaurs, which included Saltasaurus and Isisaurus. It includes some of the heaviest creatures ever to walk the earth, such as Argentinosaurus and Paralititan — which some believe have weighed up to 100 tonnes...
and ankylosaurs. Its most probable predator would have been the Moanasaurus
Moanasaurus
Moanasaurus was a genus of mosasaur from the Late Cretaceous period. Its fossil remains have been discovered in the North Island of New Zealand. Moanasaurus was a very large mosasaurine known originally from a disarticulated skull, vertebrae, ribs and paddle bones...
, one of the largest mosasaurs ever discovered.
Discovery and species
Joan WiffenJoan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod is known from a single tail vertebra found by Joan Wiffen
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
in the Mangahouanga Stream. Because of the lack of fossils, it is hard to determine what species of dinosaur is, although Wiffen
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
determined that it probably came from a Megalosaur, although in reality the tail bone is more like that of an allosaur, like the Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n dinosaur Australovenator
Australovenator
Australovenator is a genus of allosauroid theropod dinosaur from late Albian -age rocks of Australia...
. It shall not be given an official binomial name until more about its classification is known.
Classification
The Theropod of Joan WiffenJoan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
owes its name to the group Theropoda
Theropoda
Theropoda is both a suborder of bipedal saurischian dinosaurs, and a clade consisting of that suborder and its descendants . Dinosaurs belonging to the suborder theropoda were primarily carnivorous, although a number of theropod groups evolved herbivory, omnivory, and insectivory...
, a group of bipedal dinosaurs that were all carnivorous. This group includes Allosaurus
Allosaurus
Allosaurus is a genus of large theropod dinosaur that lived 155 to 150 million years ago during the late Jurassic period . The name Allosaurus means "different lizard". It is derived from the Greek /allos and /sauros...
, Megalosaurus
Megalosaurus
Megalosaurus is a genus of large meat-eating theropod dinosaurs of the Middle Jurassic period of Europe...
and most famously, Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus
Tyrannosaurus meaning "tyrant," and sauros meaning "lizard") is a genus of coelurosaurian theropod dinosaur. The species Tyrannosaurus rex , commonly abbreviated to T. rex, is a fixture in popular culture. It lived throughout what is now western North America, with a much wider range than other...
rex, plus many more.
Paleoecology
In the time of Joan Wiffen's Theropod, New Zealand was connected to Australia and much closer to the South Pole. It was mostly jungle, and dinosaur life was more common then ever. The New Zealand Theropod existed with Joan WiffenJoan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Sauropod and an unidentified type of pterosaur
Pterosaur
Pterosaurs were flying reptiles of the clade or order Pterosauria. They existed from the late Triassic to the end of the Cretaceous Period . Pterosaurs are the earliest vertebrates known to have evolved powered flight...
. Apart from this, not much is known.
Diet
Like most Theropods, the New Zealand variation would have been carnivorous, and would have most likely hunted sauropods and ornithopods.In Popular Culture
Joan WiffenJoan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod has been mentioned in the documentary The Lost Dinosaurs of New Zealand]], where it was said that it was "Possibly a megalosaur", although it has now been shown that this is probably not the case, as the one bone that was found of this creature looks more like the tail vertebra of an allosaur than a megalosaur. The description of Joan Wiffen
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod is similar to the depiction of the polar allosaurs or dwarf allosaurs (Australovenator
Australovenator
Australovenator is a genus of allosauroid theropod dinosaur from late Albian -age rocks of Australia...
) in the show Walking with Dinosaurs
Walking with Dinosaurs
Walking with Dinosaurs is a six-part documentary television miniseries that was produced by BBC, narrated by Kenneth Branagh, and first aired in the United Kingdom, in 1999. The series was subsequently aired in North America on the Discovery Channel in 2000, with Branagh's voice replaced with that...
, and it is possible that Joan Wiffen
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod is actually a different species of Australovenator
Australovenator
Australovenator is a genus of allosauroid theropod dinosaur from late Albian -age rocks of Australia...
, which, as its name suggests, lived in Australia at approximately the same time of Joan Wiffen
Joan Wiffen
-Early life:Joan Wiffen was brought up in Havelock North and King Country. Born in 1922 Joan Wiffen only had a very short secondary school education as her father believed that higher education was wasted on girls, so he made her leave...
's Theropod.