Fossil X-Ray Reveals New Baby Dinosaur Species Named After Iconic Korean Cartoon – The First New Dino Named in South Korea in 15 Years
A tiny, turkey-sized juvenile dinosaur that lived roughly 100 million years ago has just been named Doolysaurus huhmini – and yes, the genus name is a deliberate nod to South Korea’s most beloved cartoon dinosaur, the mischievous green baby Dooly.
The discovery, published today in the journal Fossil Record, marks the first new dinosaur species formally described from the Republic of Korea in 15 years and the first Korean dinosaur fossil ever found with diagnostic skull material. Researchers used high-resolution X-ray scanning to peer inside a rock-encased block and reveal a nearly complete baby skeleton hidden for over 100 million years.
In 2023, Hyemin Jo, a researcher at the Korean Dinosaur Research Center, spotted leg bones and vertebrae protruding from the rocky ground on Aphae Island (also called Aphaedo) off the southwestern coast of the Korean Peninsula. The block looked unremarkable at first until the team noticed a small cluster of gastroliths (stomach stones) still in place.
“That little cluster of stomach stones, with two leg bones sticking out, told us the animal hadn’t been scattered before it was buried,” recalled University of Texas at Austin paleontologist Julia Clarke. “So we brought the block to Texas and scanned it.”
The scans, performed at UT Austin’s world-leading High-Resolution X-ray Computed Tomography (UTCT) facility, were revelatory. Hidden inside the hard matrix were delicate skull bones, more vertebrae, ribs, limbs, and even tiny osteoderms the first time scientists have been able to study a Korean dinosaur’s head in detail.
Meet Doolysaurus huhmini – A Fuzzy, Omnivorous Juvenile
The specimen belonged to a juvenile roughly two years old when it died, about the size of a large turkey. Bone histology (thin sections of the femur) confirmed rapid growth typical of young dinosaurs. Adults were likely twice as large.
Phylogenetic analysis places Doolysaurus huhmini firmly within Thescelosauridae – a group of small, early-diverging neornithischian (bird-hipped) dinosaurs known from both Asia and North America. These bipedal herbivores (or possibly omnivores) may have sported a coat of fuzzy, feather-like filaments, giving the juvenile an almost lamb-like appearance, according to Clarke.
“We think it would have been pretty cute,” she said. “It might have looked a bit like a little lamb.”
Dozens of gastroliths inside the ribcage suggest a more varied diet than strictly plant-based. While gastroliths are common in herbivores for grinding tough vegetation, their shape and size here hint at a generalized or even omnivorous strategy plants, insects, and maybe the occasional small vertebrate.
Why the Name?
The genus Doolysaurus honors Dooly, the star of the classic Korean animated series Dooly the Little Dinosaur – a green, mischievous baby T. rex-like character known to every generation in the country.
Lead author Jongyun Jung explained: “Dooly is one of the very famous, iconic dinosaur characters in Korea. Every generation knows this character. And our specimen is also a juvenile or ‘baby,’ so it’s perfect.”
The species name huhmini pays tribute to Professor Min Huh, the pioneering Korean paleontologist who founded the Korean Dinosaur Research Center, spent 30 years studying the country’s fossils, and helped secure UNESCO recognition for Korean dinosaur sites.
South Korea is world-famous for its dinosaur tracks, nests, and eggs – some of the richest trace-fossil records on Earth. But actual bones have been frustratingly rare.
Doolysaurus huhmini changes that. It proves that small-bodied skeletons can be preserved in the mid-Cretaceous Ilseongsan Formation of Aphae Island, and that micro-CT scanning is the key to unlocking them. Jung and his colleagues are already planning more fieldwork on Aphae and similar small islands.
“This discovery suggests that other small dinosaur fossils may be found at Aphaedo or at sites with similar taphonomic conditions in Korea,” the paper notes. “It is consistent with richer dinosaurian diversity in the Cretaceous of Korea than is represented in its rich trace fossil record alone.”
The find also adds an important Asian data point to the early evolution of neornithischians, reinforcing that thescelosaurids had a broad Laurasian distribution during the mid-Cretaceous.
With advanced imaging technology now being transferred back to Korean researchers, the country’s skeletal dinosaur record is poised for a renaissance. And the first new species in 15 years comes with the perfect name – one that connects science, pop culture, and national pride in one adorable package.
As Jung put it: “We’re expecting some new dinosaur or other egg fossils to come from Aphae and other small islands.”
The baby Dooly has finally gotten its scientific skeleton – and Korea’s paleontology story is just getting started.
References:
Jung, J., Kim, M., Jo, H. & Clarke, J.A. (2026). A new dinosaur species from Korea and its implications for early-diverging neornithischian diversity. Fossil Record 29(1): 87–113.
University of Texas at Austin News: “Fossil X-ray reveals new species of baby dino named for iconic Korean cartoon” (March 19, 2026).
Sci.News: “New Species of Plant-Eating Dinosaur Unearthed in Korea” (March 19, 2026).
