Thailand’s dinosaur discoveries reveal missing links in evolution

A dinosaur statue outside a temple in Khon Kaen offers a fitting clue to what lies beneath north-eastern Thailand’s soil. The region has become the country’s richest fossil ground, with researchers uncovering remains that illuminate how dinosaurs evolved millions of years ago.

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Thailand really is the hotspot for research and discovery

Two new species identified in 2026 have already expanded Thailand’s prehistoric record. Nagatitan chaiyaphumensis was recognised as South-east Asia’s largest dinosaur, while the long-necked Uragasaurus kalasinensis became the first dinosaur of its kind identified in Thailand. Researchers at Mahasarakham University, which leads the country’s work in the field, hope the discoveries will soon give Thailand its 16th dinosaur species.

“Thailand really is the hotspot for research and discovery” in South-east Asia, said Richard Cloutier, a palaeontology professor visiting from Canada’s Université du Québec à Rimouski. Suravech Suteethorn, deputy director of the university’s Palaeontological Research and Education Centre, said the discoveries fill a geological gap in records from other countries. “Our local dinosaurs are like missing jigsaw pieces that help establish evolutionary connections, particularly around the Jurassic and Cretaceous period transition, approximately 140 million years ago,” he said.

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Our local dinosaurs are like missing jigsaw pieces that help establish evolutionary connections, particularly around the Jurassic and Cretaceous period transition, approximately 140 million years ago.

Many specimens confirmed this year had been excavated a decade or more ago and required further research before scientists could identify them. More fossils remain in university storage, while countless others are still in the ground. At Phu Wiang National Park, Suravech and his father and supervisor, veteran palaeontologist Varuvudh, are slowly exposing the giant neck of a fossil under a makeshift roof that protects the dig from monsoon rain. Suravech has not disclosed its identity, but said the find would “wow” people.

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These new discoveries indicate the grandeur and richness of our country in the past.

Varuvudh helped announce Uragasaurus in August. The plant-eater grew up to 20 metres long and lived about 150 million years ago. Shortly before that announcement, researchers confirmed the 27-tonne Nagatitan, which lived 100 million to 120 million years ago. Its name combines a South-east Asian serpent from folklore, a giant from Greek mythology and Chaiyaphum province, where it was found.

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