Top ten dinosaur and fossil finds of 2008

Washington, Dec 21 (ANI): National Geographic News has outlined a list of the ten most read stories on dinosaurs and fossils in the year 2008.

The top ten dinosaur and fossil finds of 2008 are:

10. "Amazing" dinosaur trove discovered in Utah: Two meat-eating dinosaurs, a probable Stegosaurus, and four sauropods quickly emerged at a dig that found a "logjam" of fossils, scientists announced in June.

9. Odd fish find contradicts intelligent-design argument: Flatfishes' lopsided eye arrangement evolved gradually, a July fossil study suggested-perhaps solving "a major, major puzzle to evolutionary biologists."

8. DNA-based Neanderthal face unveiled: Redheaded like her Flintstones namesake, Wilma, the first recreation of a Neanderthal based on DNA evidence, made her debut in September.

7. "Bizarre" new dinosaur: Giant Raptor found in Argentina: An "unexpected," 20-foot-long new dinosaur was discovered in South America, rewriting the evolutionary history of raptors, a December study said.

6. New "sea monster" species identified: The new genus of dinosaur-era, carnivorous reptile, found deep in a Canadian mine, is also one of the most complete fossils of its kind ever unearthed.

5. Giant "sea monster" fossil discovered in Arctic: Described as "the T. rex of the ocean," the dinosaur-era predator is one of the largest marine reptiles ever found, scientists announced in February.

4. Bizarre new dinosaurs found in Sahara: Two new species of two-legged carnivores were unveiled in February: one that hunted like a shark and another that may have eaten like a hyena.

3. Bull-size rodent discovered-biggest yet: The prehistoric "rat" had huge teeth, a January study said. The animal likely competed with saber-toothed cats and giant, flightless, meat-eating birds.

2. Giant "frog from hell" fossil found in Madagascar: Scientists working in Madagascar found in February what may be the largest frog that ever lived.

1. Ancient Praying Mantis found in amber: An 87-million-year-old insect from Japan could be a "missing link" between mantises from dinosaur times and the modern-day bugs, researchers said in April. (ANI)