Researchers have identified a new fossil species known as Infernogallus jamesi, or the hell chicken, in the Hell Creek Formation of the United States, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The fossil discovery dates back to July 2011 in a region that scientists believe was once a humid, forested environment during the late Cretaceous period. This ancient habitat featured abundant flowering plants and fruit-bearing flora that supported the local ecosystem, according to Harapan Rakyat.
Infernogallus jamesi lived approximately 145 million to 66 million years ago in the area now spanning Montana and North Dakota. In its native habitat, the species shared space with giant predators including Tyrannosaurus rex and Triceratops, Harapan Rakyat reported.
Scientists determined that the prehistoric animal measured about 1.5 meters in length and weighed roughly 11.3 kilograms, matching the size of a modern turkey. The species belonged to the Caenagnathidae family, which typically featured relatively slender bodies and toothless beaks, Harapan Rakyat reported.
Researchers utilized computed tomography, or CT scans, to study the exceptionally fragile fossils and reconstruct bone structures that were difficult to observe directly. The scans revealed small cracks and required researchers to overlap three separate digital images to build a detailed model of the animal’s jaw mechanism, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The species possessed unique jaw muscles and flexible joints that allowed for forward and backward chewing movements to break down tough food. Its beak featured distinct ridges and grooves designed for cutting soft plants and fruits, such as fleshy cherries with hard seeds, Harapan Rakyat reported.
Greg Funston, a paleontologist from Stony Brook University, noted that the distinctive jaw and beak structure has no equivalent among modern animals, comparing the creature broadly to a cassowary with the head of a parrot, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The species name jamesi honors James William Boyd, the grandfather of one of the study’s authors who maintained a keen interest in paleontology. While the fossil preserves no direct evidence of feathers, researchers suspect the animal was feathered based on the traits of its close relatives, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The discovery offers new details on the evolution of frugivorous dinosaurs in ancient North American ecosystems. The findings were published in the scientific journal Nature Communications, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The dinosaur consumed soft plants and fruits, including fleshy cherries with hard seeds, using a specialized beak and jaw structure to process vegetation, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The remains were recovered in the Hell Creek Formation across Montana and North Dakota during fieldwork in July 2011, Harapan Rakyat reported.
The species reached about 1.5 meters in length and weighed roughly 11.3 kilograms, comparable to the size of a modern turkey, Harapan Rakyat reported.