A fossil that spent nearly four decades forgotten in a museum drawer has been identified as the first dinosaur bone ever discovered in Antarctica, solving a mystery that dates back to 1985.
The fossil was unearthed on James Ross Island during a British Antarctic Survey (BAS) expedition, but researchers at the time were unsure what they had found. Believing it may have belonged to a marine reptile, the specimen was placed in the BAS geology collection in Cambridge, where it remained unnoticed for almost 40 years.
The overlooked bone was recently rediscovered by Dr Mark Evans, Collections Manager at the British Antarctic Survey, while reviewing thousands of geological specimens collected from Antarctica over several decades.
“It is only when you start asking what is hidden away in these drawers that you sometimes find something truly remarkable,” Evans said.
Suspecting the fossil was dinosaur-related, Evans invited Professor Paul Barrett of the Natural History Museum to examine it. The palaeontologist quickly confirmed it was a tail vertebra belonging to a Titanosaur, a group of giant long-necked, plant-eating dinosaurs that included some of the largest animals ever to walk the Earth.
“The shape is unmistakable,” Barrett explained. “The ball-and-socket structure of the vertebra is unique to Titanosaurs. As soon as I saw it, I knew exactly what it was.”
Based on the size of the vertebra, scientists estimate the Antarctic dinosaur measured around seven metres in length. It may have been either a juvenile Titanosaur or a smaller adult species, unlike its giant relatives that could exceed 35 metres in length and weigh up to 60 tonnes.
Researchers believe the dinosaur lived approximately 82 million years ago during the Late Cretaceous Period, when Antarctica looked vastly different from today. Instead of being covered in ice, the continent was blanketed by lush forests that supported a wide variety of prehistoric wildlife.
The fossil’s original discovery was documented in field notes by geologist Dr Mike Thomson on December 9, 1985. His notebook included a simple sketch labelled “vertebra of large reptile” and noted the fossil measured about 10 centimetres across, although its true identity was not recognised at the time.
The finding now holds special historical significance, as it confirms the earliest dinosaur fossil ever recovered from Antarctica. Although additional dinosaur remains have since been found on the continent, discoveries remain exceptionally rare because thick ice sheets conceal much of Antarctica’s prehistoric landscape.
Scientists say the rediscovered fossil offers valuable insight into the ancient ecosystems that once flourished at the southernmost part of the world and highlights how museum collections can still contain groundbreaking discoveries waiting to be identified.
