Ole Zant

Dit nieuws is moeilijk te missen. 😄

@dinocastnl.bsky.social Ik ben trouwens bezig met wat interessante papers, als jullie nog wat zoeken om binnenkort over te praten. 😉

Thanks for bringing that up. I wasn't aware of his affiliation. Not sure if any action has been taken as a result.

This odd-looking new Spinosaurus is reviving an age-old debate Could Spinosaurus swim? A new fossil with a scimitar-like head crest provides new evidence on the unsettled question.

And here's a Nat Geo article on their discovery: www.nationalgeographic.com/science/arti...

Sketch of Spinosaurus mirabilis by Ole Zant

Meet Spinosaurus mirabilis.

I got to see the material and skull reconstruction in the lab last year. Lots of people have been working hard on getting this described for quite some time and it's great to finally see it published.

And it has some good paleoart right next to it!

This looks incredible!

Last summers spoils arrived at the Oertijdmuseum today. Lots and lots of dinosaur bones, and even an articulated Edmontosaurus skeleton!
#dinosaurs #paleontology #Edmontosaurus

Aurora, a Morrison sauropod composite skeleton. It was recently added to the dinosaur parade at the Oertijdmuseum and is our second diplodocid mount.

Ah alright. Thanks

Do you happen to know if the scales on the head of that model were based on any preserved soft tissues? They look really weird.

Any paleo folks in the Chicagoland area- this afternoon is our final Open House of 2025 - come see what we’ve been working on at the Fossil Lab, 5437 S. Wabash (just West of UChicago main campus). We’ll continue hosting our monthly Open Houses in the spring of 2026! 🦕🦖

Diplodocid bones galore and aplenty at the Oertijdmuseum. Here some photos from a while ago of the construction of Aurora (a composite of two specimens). The skeleton was on display elsewhere for a month and is now being mounted in the Oertijdmuseum. Photos of that coming soon.

Looks amazing!

Also I did prepare the only Metoposaurus skull with teeth. Which is from the same site.

Here are some progress photos of the skull.
Don't ever put plaster on the bone or I'll make you a dubious taxon.

I realize I never really posted my work on the Triassic phytosaur skull at the Oertijdmuseum on here. So here (and in the posts below) are some photos. I finished it recently when I cleaned more of the mandible.
#FossilFriday #Phytosaur #paleontology

Sketched this little guy eating a mammal earlier this year, although I didn't actually know what to call it then.

I guess we do now. Welcome back Nanotyrannus!

Check out this timelapse I made while giving an Edmontosaurus a pedicure!
One small part of the story out today in Science
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Photograph by Tyler Keillor

Two new Edmontosaurus skeletons with preserved skin just got published by Paul Sereno and collegues. They had a fleshy scaly crest over their back and hoofed feet!

I was lucky enough to see the specimens last summer. The publication is open access:
www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

Definitely true. Though it seems to me these animals would have looked more wrinkly from afar than what small scaly patches might seem to make apparent.

Iguanodon from the movie Dinosaur (2000). Showing wrinkly small-scaled skin.

Wrinkly small-scaled skin of Edmontosaurus on the ribs of the AMNH mummy. Photo by Ole Zant.

Overall the integument in PP is really well done. But honestly the more time goes by, the more I appreciate the dinosaurs from Dinosaur (2000). Which have meticulously textured scaly wrinkly skin that matches known specimens quite well (at least for the time).

Insgelijks!

A new diplodocid skeleton was unveiled today at the Provincial House of the Dutch Province of North Brabant!

It will be on display there for the rest of the month, until it returns to the Oertijdmuseum, which is where we originally prepared the skeleton.
#dinosaurs

It is 👀
One I'm getting to co-author even!

Thanks! There's more to come

I haven't been posting much. But that doesn't mean I haven't been drawing any dinosaurs. 👀

New diplodocine sauropod A new diplodocine sauropod from the Morrison Formation, Wyoming, USA

Two articles have already been published and like the rest are freely accessible to everyone.

The first two articles both feature art by me, including a skeletal and life reconstruction of Ardetosaurus viator, a new species first published in this volume.
palaeo-electronica.org/content/2024...

A new giant project on diplodocoids!
When finished, it will provide a look into the anatomy, diversity and phylogeny of these long necked dinosaurs.

They just started a crowd funding campain, so if you want to see this project realized consider donating.

experiment.com/projects/rea...

Paul Sereno (left) and Ole Zant (right) in the Fossil Lab. With a Spinosaurus aegyptiacus skull in the back.

I wrapped up a summer full of dinosaurs at Paul Sereno's Fossil Lab earlier this week. I had the privilege of working with a lot of great minds, on a lot of great projects.

The vegetation still looks insanely good! 🌿 I can't imagine how long that took to draw though...