Genus
Valid Extinct

Foskeia

Dieudonné et al. 2026

Foskeia is an extinct genus of rhabdodontomorph ornithopod dinosaurs known from the Early Cretaceous Castrillo de la Reina Formation of Spain. The genus contains a single species, Foskeia pelendonum, known from fossils of multiple individuals of different ontogenetic stages. Before its formal description, it had been nicknamed the "Vegagete ornithopod."

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
1
Group
Dinosaures
Herbivore Ground dwelling, gregarious Terrestrial
Foskeia
click to enlarge
Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Dinosauria Unranked clade
›
Ornithischia Unranked clade
›
Neornithischia Unranked clade
›
Pyrodontia Unranked clade
›
Cerapoda Unranked clade
›
Ornithopoda Suborder
›
Iguanodontia Infraorder
›
Rhabdodontomorpha Unranked clade
›
Rhabdodontia Unranked clade
›
Foskeia Genus
Fossil sites 1 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇪🇸 Spain
1
Geological formations
Castrillo de la Reina
1
Temporal distribution
Barremian (125.77–121.4 Ma)
1
Species (1)
Foskeia pelendonum 126 Ma
News 1
This strange little dinosaur is forcing a rethink of evolution
bone tooth metabolism Dinosauria Foskeia +6
A newly identified tiny dinosaur, Foskeia pelendonum, is shaking up long-held ideas about how plant-eating dinosaurs evolved. Though fully grown adults were remarkably small and lightweight, their anatomy was anything but simple—featuring a bizarre, highly specialized skull and unexpected evolutionary traits. Detailed bone studies show these dinosaurs matured quickly with bird- or mammal-like metabolism, while their teeth and posture hint at fast, agile lives in dense forests.
03/02/2026 sciencedaily
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
P. Dieudonné, M. G. Becerra, and T. Zanesco, T. Tortosa, P. Cruzado‐Caballero, K. Stein, F. Torcida Fernández‐Baldor. 2026. Foskeia pelendonum, a new rhabdodontomorph from the Lower Cretaceous of Salas de los Infantes (Burgos Province, Spain), and a new phylogeny of ornithischian dinosaurs. Papers in Palaeontology 12(1):1-52 DOI ↗
Bibliography (1)
P. Dieudonné, M. G. Becerra, and T. Zanesco, T. Tortosa, P. Cruzado‐Caballero, K. Stein, F. Torcida Fernández‐Baldor. 2026. Foskeia pelendonum, a new rhabdodontomorph from the Lower Cretaceous of Salas de los Infantes (Burgos Province, Spain), and a new phylogeny of ornithischian dinosaurs. Papers in Palaeontology 12(1):1-52 DOI ↗