The University of Bucharest announces the discovery of two new dinosaur species in the UNESCO Global Geopark Țara Hațegului

These new species join the nine previously identified sauropod dinosaurs in Europe, two of which were also discovered within the geopark

A team of international researchers has discovered two new dinosaur species in the Hațeg Basin, located in the UNESCO Global Geopark Țara Hațegului. The team, led by Dr. Verónica Díez Díaz, includes experts from the University of Bucharest, the Museum für Naturkunde Berlin, and University College London. This discovery marks a significant step in understanding the diversity of European dinosaurs from the Late Cretaceous period, approximately 70 million years ago.

The newly identified sauropod species, named Petrustitan hungaricus and Uriash kadici, bring the total number of such species found in Europe to 11. Just 15 years ago, only five species were known. Notably, four of these 11 species have been discovered within the UNESCO Global Geopark Țara Hațegului.

While Petrustitan hungaricus was likely only slightly larger than the well-known dwarf sauropod Magyarosaurus dacus, fossils of Uriash kadici suggest it was nearly four times larger. The discovery of these two new species provides fresh insights into the diversity of Late Cretaceous dinosaurs on what is now the European continent before their extinction.

Dr. Verónica Díez Díaz and her team emphasize the remarkable diversity of these dinosaurs, which ranged from massive species exceeding 10 meters in length and weighing nearly 8 tons to much smaller ones measuring just 2.5 meters and weighing less than 1 ton. These findings offer new clues about the environment these dinosaurs inhabited and the conditions that allowed multiple species to coexist.

The discovery also challenges previous theories regarding island dwarfism in Hațeg Basin dinosaurs. Dr. Zoltán Csiki-Sava, a researcher and professor at the University of Bucharest’s Faculty of Geology and Geophysics, and co-author of the recent study published in the prestigious Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, explains: „Our previous understanding of the Hațeg Island dinosaurs- that lived on a tropical island during the Late Cretaceous – was that they adapted to island life by becoming smaller, a phenomenon known as ‘island dwarfism.’”

Indeed, most herbivorous dinosaurs previously found in this area were significantly smaller than their relatives elsewhere, even in Western Europe. „But now we have evidence of a large sauropod, Uriash, that lived on Hațeg Island alongside smaller herbivores. This suggests that at least some species managed to retain their large size, requiring us to reconsider our theories. We are now exploring scenarios that indicate local island evolution was more complex than just a general tendency toward dwarfism,” adds Dr. Csiki-Sava.

Dr. Philip Mannion, a researcher and professor at University College London and co-author of the study, highlights that: „Our increasingly detailed understanding of titanosaurian sauropod evolution—especially among Late Cretaceous European species—helps us piece together how dinosaur faunas in Europe formed. Interestingly, the 11 European Late Cretaceous sauropod species are not closely related to each other. Instead, many have closer relatives in Africa, Asia, and even South America, indicating biogeographical connections with these landmasses.”

Dr. Paul Upchurch, also from University College London and co-author of the paper, further explains: „These migrations often seem to align with periods when global sea levels were lower, possibly creating temporary land routes to Europe from Africa and Asia. However, intriguingly, some dinosaurs may have even swum across distances of up to 500 kilometers over millions of years.”

Despite the significant insights gained from this research, Dr. Díez Díaz stresses that there is still much to uncover: „While this study has greatly advanced our understanding of European titanosaur faunas during the Late Cretaceous, we are far from the full picture. New fossil sites continue to be discovered, providing even more material for study. However, these vital investigations require funding. I am confident that Europe will continue to reveal exciting surprises in Late Cretaceous paleontology in the years to come.”

This research was funded by The Royal Society and The Jurassic Foundation. The full article (in English) is available here.

Accompanying this press release are the following images:

1. Skeletal reconstruction (with discovered bones highlighted in red) and artistic renderings of the Hațeg Basin titanosaurs

1. Comparisons of limb bones (humerus, femur) among various Late Cretaceous European titanosaurs, illustrating the vast size difference between the dwarf Magyarosaurus and the giant Uriash
2. Reconstructed size comparison of Transylvanian titanosaurs: the dwarf Magyarosaurus versus the giant Uriash

Image Credits: Special thanks to Scott Hartman for titanosaur skeletal reconstructions and to Brian Cooley, Dan-Horațiu Popa, and the UNESCO Global Geopark Țara Hațegului for the artistic representation of Magyarosaurus dacus.

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Founded in 1864 by Prince Alexandru Ioan Cuza, the University of Bucharest is a successor to higher education institutions dating back to the Royal Academy (1694). It has played and continues to play a crucial role in the development and modernization of Romanian education, science, and culture.

Today, the university has 19 faculties offering 95 undergraduate programs, 223 master’s programs, and 23 doctoral schools in specific fields, along with an interdisciplinary doctoral school. It also operates over 50 research centers and nine research stations.

Since 2019, the University of Bucharest has been part of the CIVIS European Civic University, alongside ten other prestigious European universities: Aix-Marseille University, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Autonomous University of Madrid, Sapienza University of Rome, Stockholm University, Eberhard Karls University of Tübingen, University of Glasgow, University of Lausanne, and Paris Lodron University of Salzburg.

The UNESCO Global Geopark Țara Hațegului encompasses the entire Hațeg region and holds UNESCO site status as part of the International Geoscience and Geoparks Programme. It is one of 195 geoparks in 48 countries included in the Global Geoparks Network, following a rigorous selection and validation process.

Managed by the University of Bucharest, the geopark is a region of significant natural and cultural value, serving as a sustainable development initiative and a brand that takes visitors on a journey through Earth’s 4.6-billion-year history. It is a place that fosters the revitalization of local communities and brings together people who cherish traditional values, whether they are actual or virtual residents.

The geopark features exceptional geological, ecological, archaeological, historical, and cultural elements. The dinosaurs discovered in Țara Hațegului are unique in the world. Their scientific significance and public appeal are enhanced by the discovery of fossilized nests, eggs, and dinosaur hatchlings, as well as fossils of contemporaneous mammals and a giant flying reptile (Hatzegopteryx), part of the pterosaur group.