SAO PAULO, Nov 23 (Reuters) - Brazil's geological service on Thursday announced a new species of dinosaur, a speedy animal that lived in the desert during the early Cretaceous period. "From the large distance between the footprints found, it is possible to deduce that it was a very fast reptile that ran across the ancient dunes," the geological service said in a statement. The fossilized dinosaur "trackways," as scientists call them, were first found in the 1980s by Italian priest and paleontologist Giuseppe Leonardi in what today is the city of Araraquara, in Sao Paulo state. The footprints are different from all other known dinosaur footprints, said MCTer paleontologist Rafael Costa. Reporting by Jake Spring and Eduardo Simoes; Editing by Brendan O'Boyle and Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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Persons: Giuseppe Leonardi, Leonardi, Rafael Costa, Jake Spring, Eduardo Simoes, Brendan O'Boyle, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: SAO PAULO, Brazil's Museum, Earth Sciences, Thomson Locations: Araraquara, Sao Paulo