SCIENTISTS have confirmed the discovery of a new species of dinosaur, a close cousin of the infamous Tyrannosaurus rex. However unlike the huge “Jurassic Park” stars the newly named Suskittyrannus hazelae, which means “coyote tyrant”, is only about three feet tall (less than a metre) and would have weighed about 90 pounds (40kgs). In contrast its larger relative would have been about 40 feet tall and weighed in at a hefty nine tonnes.
The mini monster would have been around a few million years before the T-rex and may have been close to the top of its own food chain, although what exactly it would have fed on is not clear. However the Suskittyrannus may well itself have made a tasty snack for the top predator of that era, the fearsome Allosaurus. The new species is the earliest to be confirmed as a relative of the T-rex and would have walked the Earth about 90 million years ago, give or take a month or two.
