Possible New Species of Tyrannosaurus in the Ojo Alamo Formation!

I Meme Everything

Hello, guys. This is somewhat of a follow-up on my last topic regarding Tyrannosaur evolution. I discussed a possible ancestry from Lythronax argestes to Daspletosaurus torosus to Tyrannosaurus rex. However, a new discovery may have just turned my theory upside down...

Take a look at this size chart of Tyrannosaurs discovered in Northwest America.

This image shows, from smallest to largest, Nanuqsaurus hoglundi, Gorgosaurus libratus, Albertosaurus sarcophagus, Daspletosaurus torosus, and Tyrannosaurus rex. D.torosus is clearly the second-largest after T.rex, which has led many, myself included, to believe that Daspletosaurus was the evolutionary forerunner to Tyrannosaurus. However, things get a bit different if we take a look at the Tyrannosaurs of Southwest America...

This shows, from smallest to largest, Teratophoneus curriei, Lythronax argestes, Bistahieversor sealeyi, and a possible new species of Tyrannosaur; Alamotyrannus/Tyrannosaurus brinkmani. This may be the key to our understanding in Tyrannosaur evolution. In my last topic regarding this subject, I speculated that L.argestes may be a possible ancestor to T.rex. However, it is quite possible that Lythronax evolved into this new species, and quite possibly new genus, of theropod. The southern Tyrannosaurs had similar builds to those of Daspletosaurus and Tyrannosaurus, while in the north, Albertosaurus and Gorgosaurus were built differently. However, it is quite possible that this dinosaur is just a rex found much more south than most specimens. Personally, I am conflicted on the possiblity of a new Tyrannosaur, but it is possible, considering that Lythronax and Daspletosaurus lived in different parts of North America, and for the former, evolution could have taken a different path--leading to the speculative Alamotyrannus/Tyrannosaurus brinkmani. But, like I said, it could just be a T.rex found far more south than most specimens.

Another important piece of evidence to note is that the specimen of this new Tyrannosaur was 70 million years old; older than any known Tyrannosaurus individual. It is possible that this is a transitional species, and the animal began to move north, where it evolved into Tyrannosaurus rex. This is plausible because Eotriceratops xerinsularis, an ancestor of the famous Triceratops, was found in the south as well, while the Trike lived in the north. In addition, Torosaurus utahensis, an ancestor to T.latus lived here, so it's possible that this new Tyrannosaur preyed upon the two species of ceratopsian dinosaur! Feel free to share your thoughts in the comments below!

Sci-Fi King25

I prefer the name Alamotyrannus but a possible second species of Tyrannosaurus is cool.

I Meme Everything

^Well the chart refers to it under the same genus. There would have to be notable differences between T.rex and T.brinkmani for them to identify the latter as Alamotyrannus. For example, Tarbosaurus isn't called Tyrannosaurus bataar because T.bataar and T.rex have several differences in the structure of their skulls.

Sci-Fi King25

^Oh. Well a new species in the Tyrannosaurus genus is interesting.

I Meme Everything

^Yeah.

Genus is Tyrannosaurus and rex is the species.

The Hooded Figure

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I Meme Everything

^It could not just represent a new species, but also a new genus. Let me differentiate a genus and a species. Tyrannosaurus is the genus, and rex is the species. There can be multiple species under the same genus; for example, the genus Triceratops has both T.horridus and T.prorsus. If there are significant differences between multiple species under the same genus, then it would most likely be re-classified as a new genus.

I Meme Everything

Another name for the new species could be Tyrannosaurus alamoensis xD

The Hooded Figure

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I Meme Everything

^And this could very-well mean a new rivalry between Tyrannosaurs and Ceratopsids, since Eotriceratops was found around the same area as Alamotyrannus/Tyrannosaurus brinkmani. But then again, there's also Torosaurus utahensis.

I Meme Everything

Updated to include more information and speculation.

GG

I doubt the existence of another tyrannosaur living alongside T.rex to be honest.

Ultrazero80

Interesting.

Xenotaris

@GorillaGodzilla

So.... Panthera leo and Panthera pardus aren't able to exist side by side with each other? I guess Lions and Leopards living side by side in the same ecosystem must tear a hole in the universe.

Joking aside, two Tyrannosaurus genus isn't a stretch of the imagination since there are multiple modern day animals that share the same genus living alongside each other. Panthera leo (Lion), Panthera pardus (Leopard), Panthera onca (Jaguar), Panthera tigris (Tiger), and Panthera uncia (Snow Leopard) for an example.

I Meme Everything

GG I never said that A/T.brinkmani and T.rex coexisted.

GG

Xeno, I'm saying that an Apex predator like Tyrannosaurus I don't think at-least could easily co-exist with another predatory of its own kind. The type of animal it was, its only competition would've been Dakotaraptor in the predatory field. All our knowledge dictates that T.rex was the sole big theropod predator of its region and time.

Tyrant yeah I was just saying in general, great topic btw.

I Meme Everything

^Do you think that A/T.brinkmani represents a new genus/species, or is it just a rex specimen that was located in the south?

GG

Rex specimen in the south, definitely. There is evidence to suggest T.rex dominated all of America.

I Meme Everything

^Even the east?

GG

Whole continent.

Xenotaris

@GodzillaGorilla:

That doesn't mean there couldn't be two different species of Tyrannosaurs, I mean in Asia, Panthera leo (Lions) and Panthera tigiris (Tigers) have shared eco-systems together and even interacted with one and other... rarely in a violent confrontation but other times they ignore each other.

Facehuggers

@Xenotaris

That's a great point!