Remains of large dinosaur skeleton unearthed in Portugal

Palaeontologists have been working away in a Portuguese backyard to unearth the remains of what could be the largest dinosaur ever found in Europe, according to researchers from the University of Lisbon.

Fossilised fragments of the dinosaur were first discovered in 2017 by a property owner in the city of Pombal in central Portugal, while doing construction work.

Earlier this month, Spanish and Portuguese palaeontologists worked on the site to unearth what they reckoned was a dinosaur that was about 25m long, and lived around 145 million years ago, the university's Faculty of Sciences department said.

The skeleton belonged to a sauropod — a group of plant-eating, four-legged species of dinosaurs, characterised by long necks and tails, the researchers said.

ALSO READ:

• Europe's largest dinosaur skeleton found in man's backyard

• Drought uncovers 113 million-year-old dinosaur tracks in US park