A new study published just a few days ago (https://peerj.com/articles/20794/) has completely changed our understanding of the facial anatomy and biology of one of Australia’s most famous dinosaurs. It shows that Muttaburrasaurus langdoni, which rivaled Iguanodon or even T.rex in size, didn’t possess a resonating chamber in its nose but a much narrower snout than traditional media depictions, a strong sense of smell, wide-ranging vision, low-frequency hearing similar to that of elephants, as well as a specialized teeth and beak for consuming tough vegetation.
Hi folks! I am recruiting PhD students for my new lab housed within the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History at the University of Oklahoma. If you are interested in fish macroevolution, geometric morphometrics, specimen-based research & phylogenomics please reach out.
It’s been far far too long since I’ve shown my art publicly so here is an artwork that I am especially proud of, a paleo accurate reconstruction of a Yutyrannus hauli. I hope all of you like it too:)
I've made two Dire Wolves! Their names are Honey and Earl Grey.
They're for sale over here; https://www.palaeoplushies.com/shop/dire-wolf
I had great fun picking out the different fabrics for these two, Earl ended up with some really interesting combos that I hadn't planned when I sublimated his parts - I'd intended on making a frosted black and grey wolf but I just CANNOT turn my back on that short honey fabric. I used this really cool offcut for his mane and tail which is a gradient from honey to grey, and then I found this "african wild dog"-esque patchwork for his back.
For honey, I ended up using a very old fabric from my stash for her mane and tail, whilst the tipped back fabric was picked up from Vinted as an "end of roll". I love mixing furs of different lengths and textures.
I gave them "opposite" colour eyes, because I feel like they contrast this pair really well.
The enigmatic Esconichthys apopyris lived during the late Carboniferous, around 308 million years ago, in a lush tropical estuary covering what is now Illinois, USA.
Up to about 8cm long (~3"), it had a prominent pair of eyes, two pairs of elongated external gills bearing long feathery projections, a slender limbless body lined with muscle segments, and a single low fin running along the underside of its tail.
There also seem to have been two different body types that might represent separate species: the "flathead" form with wide-set eyes, and the "snubnose" form with close-set eyes.
Often nicknamed "blades", "ghosts", or "grasshoppers" by fossil collectors, specimens of this little animal are the most common vertebrates found in the Mazon Creek fossil beds — and yet we don't actually know what it is. In the past it was proposed to be a larval lungfish or amphibian, but its anatomy doesn't quite fit any known group.
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NixIllustration.com | Tumblr | Patreon
References:
Bardack, David. "A larval fish from the Pennsylvanian of Illinois." Journal of Paleontology 48.5 (1974): 988-993. https://www.jstor.org/stable/1303297
Bardack, David. "Fishes of the Mazon Creek fauna." Mazon Creek Fossils. Academic Press, 1979. 501-528. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-12-519650-5.50024-2
RCFossils. "Mazon Creek Best Of The Best Esconichthys Apopyris Bardack, 1974." The Fossil Forum, 03 Dec. 2019, https://www.thefossilforum.com/topic/100449-mazon-creek-best-of-the-best-esconichthys-apopyris-bardack-1974/
Young, Andrew. "Mazon Creek Fossil Fauna - Tetrapods, Aistopods, and Larval Fish." Andrew Young Art, https://www.andrewyoungart.com/mc-fa---tetrapods-and-blades.html
Some close-ups of the dinos! The three layers broken out -- sky, land, and sea -- and some spotlights on my fave lil dudes, including the chonky and spiralsaw-jaw sharks, the toothy T.rexies, the not-so-Littlefoot, and an orange Nessie! (Pattern by UnaBuenaPieza.)
Galahadosuchus jonesi was a small early crocodylomorph that lived during the late Triassic of what is now southwest England, around 215 million years ago.
About 60cm long (~2'), it had a fully upright quadrupedal posture, slender digitigrade limbs, a long tail, and a paired row of interlocking osteoderms running along its back.
Its habitat at the time was part of an archipelago of small tropical islands, in a forested karst environment full of sinkholes and caves. It would have been a fast and agile runner, and like its close relative Terrestrisuchus it was probably a generalist pursuit predator feeding on prey such as invertebrates and smaller reptiles.
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NixIllustration.com | Tumblr | Patreon
References:
Bodenham, Ewan H., et al. "A second species of non‐crocodyliform crocodylomorph from the Late Triassic fissure deposits of southwestern UK: Implications for locomotory ecological diversity in Saltoposuchidae." The Anatomical Record (2026). https://doi.org/10.1002/ar.70162
Davis, Josh. "New species of ancient crocodile named in honour of Welsh school teacher." Natural History Museum, 13 Feb. 2026, https://www.nhm.ac.uk/discover/news/2026/february/new-species-ancient-crocodile-named-after-welsh-school-teacher.html
Wikipedia contributors. “Galahadosuchus” Wikipedia, 08 Apr. 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galahadosuchus
Wikipedia contributors. “Terrestrisuchus” Wikipedia, 06 Apr. 2026, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terrestrisuchus
My latest creation! A 1/2 size realistic, pose-able Protoceratops.
This one is a LOT of fun to pose and has so much character. Thrilled with how it turned out!
For sale over here: https://www.palaeoplushies.com/shop/12-pose-able-protoceratops
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