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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 18/09/2026

Want to know what’s going on with North American Ornithomimid Taxonomy and Ornithomimosaur evolution? Come by my talk at SVP on Saturday November 14th in Dinosauria 4: A mostly “bird hipped bonanza” #SVP2026

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 26/08/2026

SVP abstract accepted! See you all in Ohio! #SVP2026

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 07/08/2026

#FossilFriday here is Pulmonoscorpius kirktonensis a genus of scorpion from the early Carboniferous of Scotland. Pulmonoscorpius was one of the largest scorpions to ever live with an estimated length of 70cm.

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Kelsey Jenkins, PhD @reptiliferous.bsky.social · 05/08/2026

New research out today! Some animals have three eyes?! This eye isn't for "seeing" per se, but it's connected to a part of the brain responsible for regulating body temperature. So if you see a lizard basking out in the sun to get warm, oftentimes this eye plays a central role. But there's more...

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Xavier A. Jenkins @semifossorial.bsky.social · 28/05/2026

Our paper on turtle origins is finally out in Current Biology, with two major implications for our understanding of reptile evolution 🐢 #Paleontology #Turtles #Evolution www.cell.com/current-biol...

A pair of Eunotosaurus by Gabriel Ugueto: a sense of scale is provided by Glossopterus leaves in the fore-and-background and by a prosbolid hemipteran insect

Phylogeny of major reptile groups, showing turtles (Pantestudines) as early archosauromorphs and the putative stem-turtle Eunotosaurus as a millerettid stem reptile

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 22/05/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Guidraco venator, a genus of Pterosaur from the early Cretaceous of China. Also One of a few Pterosaur genera that made its appearance the Netflix documentary #thedinosaurs

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 08/05/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Attenborosaurus a genus of Pliosaurid Plesiosaur from the early Jurassic of England. Named after the legendary Sir David Attenborough who turns 100 today

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Griffin Lab @griffinlabpaleo.bsky.social · 30/04/2026

New paper! We conducted a preliminary histological survey of the vertebrates from the Late Triassic Pebbly Arkose Formation of Zimbabwe. This assemblage (230 Ma) contains the oldest-known definitive dinosaurs from Africa! doi.org/10.1111/joa....

Art depicting the Pebbly Arkose vertebrates, with the histology of each taxon highlighted

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 01/05/2026

Happy #FossilFriday from the Royal Tyrrell Museum! Today is also the first day of CSVP, looking forward to a great conference! #paleontology #CSVP2026 #SVP

Ornithomimus sp. from the Dinosaur Park formation

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 17/04/2026

Happy #FossilFriday! Here is Hyperodapedon a genus of Rhynchosaur from the late Triassic of Europe and Asia. Art by Gabriel Ugueto

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Natalia (娜塔莉) @wrycritic.bsky.social · 26/03/2026

Institute of Paleobiology of the Polish Academy of Sciences & the University of Warsaw invite participats for paleontological excavations, in July-August. Accommodation and meals are provided. The digs uncover Triassic vertebrates in Polish Silesia. Details in thread 🧵

Paleontologists from the Institute of Paleobiology of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Institute of Evolutionary Biology at the University of Warsaw invite adults, primarily students of biology and geology, to participate in paleontological excavations. In July and August, we will be searching for vertebrate fossils in Triassic sediments.

The camps are free of charge. Accommodation and meals are provided.

Space is limited. Applications with a cover letter, contact information, and date preferences should be submitted by May 31st using the online form:
https://forms.gle/C7HikmxVnoqNGLrdA

Dates (specific camp locations will be announced later):
Camp I (July 5th - 18th)
Camp II (July 19th - August 1st)
Camp III (August 2nd - 15th)
Camp IV (August 16th - 29th)

Paleontolodzy z Instytutu Paleobiologii PAN i Instytutu Biologii Ewolucyjnej Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego zapraszają osoby pełnoletnie, przede wszystkim studentów kierunków biologicznych i geologicznych, do udziału w wykopaliskach paleontologicznych. W lipcu i sierpniu będziemy poszukiwać skamieniałości kręgowców w osadach triasowych.

Obozy są bezpłatne. Zapewniamy nocleg i wyżywienie.

Liczba miejsc jest ograniczona. Zgłoszenia z listem motywacyjnym, danymi kontaktowymi i preferencjami terminowymi należy przesyłać do 31 maja przez formularz online:
https://forms.gle/C7HikmxVnoqNGLrdA

Terminy (lokacje konkretnych turnusów zostaną ogłoszone później):
I turnus (5 - 18 lipca)
II turnus (19 lipca - 1 sierpnia)
III turnus (2 - 15 sierpnia)
IV turnus (16 - 29 sierpnia)

Dodatkowe informacje:
https://www.paleo.pan.pl/dzial-badawczy/wykopaliska.html
https://www.facebook.com/notes/687880055483720/
https://dinozaury.com/?p=5099

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 10/04/2026

Happy #FossilFriday meet Kaprosuchus saharicus! Nicknamed the “Boar croc” Kaprosuchus lived during the late Cretaceous of Niger 🇳🇪 roughly 95 million years ago. Kaprosuchus is a member of the Mahajangasuchidae an early branch of notosuchian crocodiles

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 27/03/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Diplocaulus a genus of lepospondyl amphibian from the Late Carboniferous and early Permian period. A distinctive feature of Diplocaulus are its long horns at the back of the skull that are formed by elongation of the squamosal and tabulars

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 06/03/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Coelophysis! A genus of Triassic dinosaur that lived in what is now New Mexico. Coelophysis is one of the best sampled dinosaur genera with dozens of individuals discovered from the Ghost Ranch locality in New Mexico.

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 27/02/2026

Happy #fossilfriday here is the spectacular Dire Wolf wall at the La Brea Tar pits Museum

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Very sad news in Paleo, Hans Dieter-Sues passed away today. Hans was a phenomenal Paleontologist and wonderful person who will be dearly missed

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Steve Brusatte @stevebrusatte.bsky.social · 23/02/2026

Terrible news that Hans-Dieter Sues has died. Way too young. Hans (on the right) & Sasha Averianov (left) invited me to study Timurlengia with them. I'll always appreciate it. Hans was eminent, always nice and cheerful to me, a man of ethics and faith. RIP.

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 06/02/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Microraptor a genus a Dromaeosaur from the early Cretaceous of China. A unique feature of Microraptor is the presence of flight feathers on the legs in addition to the arms.

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Science Magazine @science.org · 30/01/2026

Astronomers are planning ambitious telescopes to search for signs of life on distant planets. A newly discovered world might just be the perfect target. Learn more: scim.ag/3Z75OMi

Earth-size planet spotted with yearlong orbit

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 16/01/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Mesosaurus tenuidens a genus of Aquatic para reptile from the early Permian of South Africa and South America. Mesosaurus fossils were instrument in proving continental drift as remains were found in two widely separated regions

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 09/01/2026

Happy #FossilFriday here is Beelzebufo ampinga an extinct genus of Hyloid frog from the late Cretaceous of Madagascar. Beelzebufo was the largest frog to ever live with an estimated size of 42 cm and likely preyed on juvenile dinosaurs.

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Steve Brusatte @stevebrusatte.bsky.social · 07/01/2026

A shake-up of the dinosaur family tree! Rhabdodontids are not ornithopods. They are ceratopsians. There were horned dinosaurs in Europe! As shown by a new fossil of Ajkaceratops from Hungary! Check out our new study, led by @tweetisaurus.bsky.social ⤵️

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Darren Naish @tetzoo.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

A #PrehistoricPlanet Christmas, borrowed from jurassic_world_clipz on TikTok :) Merry Christmas everyone!

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Gabriel Ugueto @serpenillus.bsky.social · 25/12/2025

I want to wish everyone Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays with this quick sketch of two Microraptorine dinosaurs in the snow ❄️. I hope everybody is having a great day and enjoying the presents! 🎁 🎄 🎅 Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Sketch showing a pair of undetermined microraptorine dinosaurs perched on a branch with some snow falling down

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Second #FossilFriday post, I also got to see the very cool Polycotylid Plesiosaur that is on display at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles county that has a fetus preserved (see the second photo for a closer look

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 19/12/2025

Happy #FossilFriday this week I got to visit the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County to look at the Maastrichtian Struthiomimus that is on display. I also got to see the rest of the dinosaur gallery which is spectacular!

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

WitmerLab at Ohio University @witmerlab.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

#FossilFriday The awesome new article in Science by @griffinlabpaleo.bsky.social et al. adds more evidence for the validity of Nanotyrannus by showing that the hyoid bone in the holotype has adult bone histology. Here are some more images showing the ceratobranchial bone in place in the skull. 🦖

Volume renderings of CT scan data of the holotype skull of Nanotyrannus lancensis (CMNH 7541). The top image is mostly a left lateral view. The bottom image is a ventral view showing the caudal half of the hyoid bone preserved in place.

Additional images (all in ventral view) of the holotype skull of Nanotyrannus lancensis (CMNH 7541). The top right image is from the original 1946 article by Charles Gilmore showing the full ceratobranchial hyoid bone in place. The bottom photograph (that I snapped in 2005 when I had the skull on loan for study & CT scanning) shows the caudal half of the hyoid bone preserved in place. The top left image is similar to the bottom image but is grayscale except for the hyoid bone.

The main photograph (again, that I snapped in 2005 when I had the skull on loan for study & CT scanning) shows the caudal half of the hyoid bone of Nanotyrannus (CMNH 7541) preserved in place, but it's more of a front view. Notice the broken end of the ceratobranchial in a close-up in the inset.

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 05/12/2025

Happy #fossilfriday here is Dinornis a genus of Giant Moa that lived in New Zeland until as recently as the 1500s. Dinornis itself was the tallest bird to ever live with females standing 10 feet tall, a phenomenon known as reverse sexual dimorphism. #PrehistoricPlanetIceAge

Female Dinornis on the right. Male Dinornis on the left

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 21/11/2025

#FossilFriday here is a Triceratops skeleton on display at the Royal Tyrrell Museum

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 19/11/2025

Another SVP meeting in the books. It was a success and a great time #2025svp

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Owen Goodchild @paleowen.bsky.social · 15/11/2025

Thanks to everyone who turned up bright and early for my #2025SVP talk. Glad to see some love for the gomphs!

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 13/11/2025

Thank you to everyone who visited my poster yesterday. Looking forward to a great rest of the conference! :) #2025SVP

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 07/11/2025

Happy #FossilFriday Here is Temnodontosaurus trigonodon a genus of Ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe. A notable feature of Temnodontosaurus was its incredibly large eyes the largest of any known vertebrate.

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Reposted by Declan Rourke

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr. @arctomet.bsky.social · 30/10/2025

Here you go. Note: it is still the unformatted version! Zanno, L.E., Napoli, J.G. Nanotyrannus and Tyrannosaurus coexisted at the close of the Cretaceous. Nature (2025). doi.org/10.1038/s415...

doi.org

Nanotyrannus and Tyrannosaurus coexisted at the close of the Cretaceous - Nature

Nature - Nanotyrannus and Tyrannosaurus coexisted at the close of the Cretaceous

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 25/10/2025

For those who are attending SVP this year. Feel free to stop by my poster #SVP2025

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Declan Rourke @declan78.bsky.social · 21/10/2025

Hello! My name is Declan Rourke I am a Paleontology Masters Student in the Currie lab at the University of Alberta. I currently study North American Ornithomimid Taxonomy. Some of you may already know me from Instagram (@rourkedeclan) and Twitter (declan@ualberta).

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