Maria discusses the Triassic “wonder reptile” on Morning Ireland

24 Jul 2025

Maria was on Morning Ireland this morning to discuss the discovery of a new species of fossil reptile from the Triassic period. This reptile had a large crest made of complex plume-like structures, long before modern-type feathers evolved.

This research was published in the journal Nature, for more information see here

Images:

Fig. 1: Prof. McNamara and Dr Rossi with a fossil specimen showing the Mirasaura crest. Copyright

Fig. 2: Reconstruction and illustration of Mirasaura in its natural forested environment, hunting insects. Copyright: Gabriel Ugueto