Online Reporter
Darlington Munyikwa
Deputy Executive Director
National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe
It is with great honour and privilege, on behalf of my co-authors and the Board of Trustees of the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe (NMMZ), that I announce the discovery of yet another new dinosaur species from Zimbabwe—Musango matusadonaensis.
The fossil remains of Musango matusadonaensis were first discovered in 2018 in the Musango Concession Area along the southern shores of Lake Kariba.
The discovery forms part of an ongoing collaborative palaeontological research programme being undertaken by palaontologists from the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe, the British Natural History Museum, and the Institute of Evolutionary Studies at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa.
The project commenced in 2017 and continues to reveal Zimbabwe’s extraordinary palaeontological heritage.
What initially appeared to be an ordinary exposure of fossil bones has culminated in the identification of an entirely new dinosaur species—the fifth dinosaur to be discovered in Zimbabwe.
Before this discovery, four dinosaur species had been recorded in the country: Megapnosaurus rhodesiensis (formerly Syntarsus rhodesiensis) in 1969, Vulcanodon karibaensis in 1972, Mbiresaurus raathi in 2022, and Musankwa sanyatiensis in 2024.
The discovery of Musango matusadonaensis further demonstrates Zimbabwe’s exceptional contribution to global knowledge of dinosaur evolution and the early history of terrestrial vertebrates.
Musango matusadonaensis lived approximately 210 million years ago during the Late Triassic Period. Its fossil remains were recovered from the Pebbly Arkose Formation of the Zimbabwean Upper Karoo Supergroup.
Dinosaur fossils from this period are relatively rare worldwide and have been documented in only a handful of countries, notably Argentina, Brazil, India and South Africa.
This geological interval marks the emergence and early diversification of dinosaurs following the catastrophic end-Permian mass extinction approximately 252 million years ago—the largest extinction event in Earth’s history.
Although only postcranial remains have been recovered, the fossils are remarkably informative.
The specimen comprises associated but disarticulated vertebrae, upper limb bones and hind limb elements, allowing researchers to identify it as a distinct species.
The anatomy indicates that Musango matusadonaensis was an obligate biped. While its diet cannot be determined with certainty because skull material has not yet been recovered, comparisons with closely related dinosaurs suggest that it was probably herbivorous.
The individual is estimated to have been approximately eight years old, measuring about 4.5 metres in length and weighing around 222 kilogrammes.
The name of the dinosaur was derived from the area it was found. Musango means living in the bush. It can also be interpreted as referring to the area where it was found “Musango Concession Area”. The species name “matusadonaensis” is from the Matusadonha National Park.
Zimbabwe occupies a unique geological position within the Zambezi and Limpopo sedimentary basins, which contain extensive Mesozoic rocks belonging to the Karoo Supergroup.
These rocks form part of the greater Karoo Basin of southern Africa, one of the world’s most important geological archives for understanding the evolution of dinosaurs and other terrestrial vertebrates.
Although fossil-bearing horizons are relatively uncommon, Zimbabwe possesses exceptionally well-preserved deposits that remain largely unexplored.
Compared with countries such as Argentina, Brazil and South Africa, Zimbabwe has undertaken relatively limited research on Mesozoic vertebrate fossils.
Consequently, the discovery of Musango matusadonaensis is particularly significant, highlighting the country’s enormous but still underappreciated potential to contribute to international palaeontological research.
Beyond Musango matusadonaensis, ongoing investigations along the shores and islands of Lake Kariba, together with complementary research in Mbire District, have yielded a remarkable diversity of fossil vertebrates, plants and invertebrates.
These include fossil fish, phytosaurs and aetosaurs (early crocodile relatives), rhynchosaurs, plants and invertebrate species.
The composition of Zimbabwe’s Late Triassic fauna differs from equivalent fossil assemblages elsewhere in Gondwana, reflecting the unique ecological and climatic conditions that prevailed across the ancient supercontinent.
Evidence from these fossil assemblages suggests that parts of present-day Zimbabwe experienced relatively humid environmental conditions during the Late Triassic, contrasting with the more arid environments represented in contemporaneous deposits elsewhere in Gondwana.
These findings provide valuable insights into regional climatic variation and the evolutionary pathways that shaped early terrestrial ecosystems.
The discovery of Musango matusadonaensis therefore represents far more than the identification of a new dinosaur species.
It reinforces Zimbabwe’s status as one of the most important repositories of prehistoric life and underscores the country’s potential to make globally significant contributions to evolutionary science.
Continued investment in palaeontological research, fossil conservation and scientific collaboration will undoubtedly lead to further discoveries that deepen our understanding of the origin and evolution of dinosaurs and the ancient ecosystems they inhabited.
* The author Darlington Munyikwa is the Deputy Executive Director of the National Museums and Monuments of Zimbabwe
