Uncovering Ancient Marvels: From Lynx Revival to Dinosaur Discoveries

Current science news highlights include the remarkable rebound of the Iberian Lynx from near extinction, the identification of a uniquely horned dinosaur Lokiceratops in Montana, the return of ancient Mexican artifacts, and the discovery of fossils from a crocodile-like reptile in Brazil. These findings underscore biodiversity conservation, paleontological marvels, and cultural heritage preservation.

Following is a summary of current science news briefs.

European lynx species rebounds from brink of extinction

A species of lynx found in remote areas of Spain and Portugal has rebounded from near extinction, with its adult population growing more than tenfold since the start of the millennium. Wildlife experts are calling the recovery of the Iberian Lynx unparalleled among felines in an age of extinction in which species are vanishing at a rate not seen in 10 million years due to climate change, pollution and habitat loss.

Dinosaur from Montana had horns like Norse god Loki's blades

About 78 million years ago in what was then a subtropical coastal plain - now the badlands of northern Montana - lived a four-legged plant-eating dinosaur built a bit like a rhinoceros with a fabulously ornate set of horns on its head. This newly identified dinosaur, called Lokiceratops rangiformis, was about 22 feet (6.7 meters) long, weighed around 5-1/2 tons and used a powerful beak at the front of its mouth to browse on low-growing vegetation such as ferns and flowering plants, scientists said on Thursday.

Antiquities returning to Mexico include Mayan vase sold for $4 in US store

The Mexican government will welcome back 20 cultural artifacts that date to the country's storied ancient past, all found in the United States including a Mayan vase over 1,000 years old and purchased for about $4 at a Washington area thrift shop. Mexico's antiquities institute INAH announced the repatriation, which also include centuries-old plates, bowls as well as sculpted figures belonging to the Aztec, Totonac and Teotihuacan cultures, in a statement on Thursday.

Fossils of ancient crocodile-like reptile found in Brazil

A Brazilian scientist has identified fossils of a small crocodile-like reptile that lived during the Triassic Period several million years before the first dinosaurs. The fossils of the predator, called Parvosuchus aurelioi, include a complete skull, 11 vertebrae, the pelvis and some limb bones, according to paleontologist Rodrigo Muller of the Federal University of Santa Maria in Rio Grande state, author of the research published on Thursday the journal Scientific Reports.

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