Jan 16 (Reuters) - Scientists in Chile's Patagonia region are unearthing the southernmost dinosaur fossils recorded outside Antarctica, including remains of megaraptors that would have dominated the area's food chain before their mass extinction. The specimens, according to University of Chile researcher Jared Amudeo, had some characteristics not present in Argentine or Brazilian counterparts. "The enormous variation we are seeing, the biological diversity, was also responding to very powerful environmental stimuli," Leppe said. "This world was already in crisis before (the meteorite) and this is evidenced in the rocks of the Rio de las Chinas Valley," he said. Reporting by Marion Giraldo; Writing by Sarah Morland, Editing by Alistair BellOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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