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Archaeology and palaeontology
People & CultureEnvironment

New dinosaur species found in China named after popular cartoon character Doraemon’s best buddy Nobita

  • Scientists believe the dinosaur was a predatory animal from the Cretaceous period
  • Scientists named the species after ‘Doraemon’ because the cartoon helped introduce kids to dinosaurs

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Scientists discover a new fossilised footprint (left) that they named after Nobita (right), a character from the ‘Doraemon’ cartoons. Photo: Handout
Kevin McSpadden

Once again, despite his extreme averageness, the Doraemon character Nobita is surprising the world and is making a footprint, this time of the prehistoric nature.

Scientists in China announced last week that a new species of dinosaur discovered last year will be named Eubrontes nobitai. The “nobitai” word is a nod to the character Nobita, a best friend of Doraemon in the cartoons.
The announcement was made in the Journal of Palaeontology at the China University of Petroleum in Beijing.
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The scientists credited Doraemon for helping young children get introduced to dinosaurs. Photo: Shutterstock
The scientists credited Doraemon for helping young children get introduced to dinosaurs. Photo: Shutterstock

Xing Lida, an associate professor who was part of the discovery team, told Kyodo News that the team chose Doraemon because the cartoon was “one of the common memories of childhood for those who were born in China in the 1980s”.

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He told the news agency that portrayals of dinosaurs in the Doraemon cartoons were “very excellent” and that the show helped kids discover the prehistoric giants.

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