Researchers collected nearly three tonnes of sediments containing the fossils of animals that roamed Earth around 70 million years ago.
The first dinosaur fossils to be discovered in Serbia have been published by a team of Serbian, Dutch and British paleontologists, including from the University of Birmingham.
Over the last 200 years, dinosaur fossils have been discovered in more than 90 countries all over the world, including many parts of Eastern Europe such as Romania, Bulgaria, and Hungary, but these latest findings mark the first within Serbia.
The new discoveries, published in Cretaceous Research, were made between 2022 and 2024 by a team led by Dr Zoran Marković from the Natural History Museum Belgrade.
The results show that at least two major types of dinosaurs lived in Serbia during the Late Cretaceous, which began 145 million years ago. The diverse findings included rare specimens such as Paronychodon, as well as an arm bone that belonged to a sauropod dinosaur; the group of gigantic, long-necked, four-legged plant-eating dinosaurs that includes Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus.
The bone likely belonged to a member of the titanosaur group, but its small size and distinctive features suggest it may represent either a juvenile or a dwarf form, similar to the tiny sauropod Magyarosaurus from Romania.
In addition, sixteen isolated theropod teeth were discovered, nine of which belong to dromaeosaurid dinosaurs; the group of agile, carnivorous predators that includes Velociraptor. Some unusual teeth within this number were found to lack serrations, indicating that they might belong to early birds, or represent previously unknown members of this group.
This discovery fills a major gap and opens a window into a world that existed here around 70 million years ago, when this area was likely part of the Haţeg Island, a landmass that existed during the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene.
Commenting on the groundbreaking findings, Dr Zoran Marković said:
“It was incredibly exciting to uncover the first dinosaur fossils in Serbia. For decades, we’ve known that nearby countries yielded dinosaur remains, but until now, Serbia was a blank spot on the Mesozoic map.
“Therefore, this discovery fills a major gap and opens a window into a world that existed around 70 million years ago, when this area was likely part of the Haţeg Island; which existed during the Late Cretaceous and Paleogene, before tectonic movements later transported parts of this landmass to what is now Serbia.”
The subsequent study of the fossils was led by Dr Predrag Radović, University of Belgrade and the National Museum Kraljevo, in collaboration with other paleontological researchers at Birmingham and the Natural History Museum in the UK.
The team made detailed comparisons to dinosaurs from other parts of the world, as well as using innovative, new machine learning approaches to identify the fossils.
Dr Predrag Radović, University of Belgrade and the National Museum Kraljevo, said:
“These discoveries not only represent Serbia’s first dinosaur fossils but also suggest that southeastern Serbia was once part of a vibrant island ecosystem during the Late Cretaceous; providing home to plant-eating and meat-eating dinosaurs, as well as other vertebrates such as ancient multituberculate mammals.
“The find at Osmakovo marks a major step forward for Serbian palaeontology and highlights the region’s untapped potential for future discoveries, which could potentially shed further light on the history of the Cretaceous world.”
Professor Richard Butler, Professor of Palaeobiology at the University of Birmingham:
“It’s very exciting to be part of the first discovery of dinosaur fossils in a country where they were previously unknown. New discoveries such as these are critical to understanding where, when and how dinosaurs lived, and hopefully this study marks a new chapter for palaeontological finds in both Serbia and Eastern Europe.”
Looking to the future, the University of Birmingham plans to continue growing its international leadership in palaeontology, generating exciting and significant new fundamental insights and demonstrating the vital importance of the fossil record for understanding the past and future of biodiversity, climate and environments across the globe.
As the University continues to celebrate its 125th anniversary year, Birmingham will also host the upcoming 85th Annual Meeting of the Society of Vertebrate Paleontology. Taking place at the ICC Birmingham from 12 - 15 November, the event is one of the world’s largest palaeontological conferences with over 1,200 international scientists, students, artists, writers, and scholars set to attend. The selection of Birmingham as the local host city highlights the University's strong global research ties and collaborations in countries like Brazil, China, the USA and many more.
For media enquiries please contact Holly Young, Press Office, University of Birmingham, tel: +44 (0)7815 607 157.
Notes to editor:
Professor of Palaeobiology
Richard is a vertebrate palaeontologist with expertise in the systematics, evolution and biogeography of late Palaeozoic to Mesozoic reptiles.
