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Fierce-looking B.C. fossil confirmed as new genus, days after death of discoverer
- Researchers published on May 23, 2025, the identification of Traskasaura sandrae, a new marine reptile genus found on Vancouver Island, Canada.
- The discovery stems from fossils found in 1988 near the Puntledge River, with a better-preserved specimen uncovered in 2020 aiding definitive classification.
- Traskasaura sandrae is an elasmosaur from the Late Cretaceous, characterized by a long neck and robust, crushing teeth adapted for preying on ammonites along British Columbia’s coast.
- Lead author F. Robin O'Keefe expressed that their recently published study resolves the longstanding questions about the fossils, highlighting that the Pacific Northwest now can claim a distinctive Mesozoic reptile discovery of its own.
- The species, named to honor Michael and Heather Trask, became British Columbia's official provincial fossil in 2023 after a five-year campaign and public poll recognizing its significance.
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Fierce-Looking BC Fossil Confirmed as New Genus, Days After Death of Discoverer
Before British Columbia fossil hunter Mike Trask died last week, he knew that recognition of his biggest discovery would live on. Now it has been confirmed that the ferocious-looking marine reptile he found with his then 12-year-old daughter on Vancouver Island 37 years ago is a new species—and an entirely new genus. Trask died on May 15, eight days before the publication of the peer-reviewed findings in the Journal of Systematic Paleontology ab…
·New York, United States
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