Brazilian scientists have identified the remains of a giant dinosaur found in the country five years ago. It turned out that the dinosaur is a close relative of an ancient lizard found in Spain. This discovery confirms that about 120 million years ago, land routes existed between the territories of present-day South America, Africa, and Europe. The study detailing the findings was published in March in the scientific journal of the British Museum of Natural History – Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. The new species has been named "Dasosaurus tocantinensis." This name refers to the Tocantins River, a major waterway near where the remains of the lizard were found. Currently, it is one of the largest dinosaurs ever discovered in Brazil. The fossils were found during construction work near the city of Davinópolis in the northeastern state of Maranhão. The research was led by paleontologist Elver Meyer from the Federal University of the São Francisco Valley. Among the bones found, a femur measuring about 1.5 meters stands out. This led scientists to estimate that the animal's length reached approximately 20 meters.  "This femur indicates that we are dealing with a very large dinosaur. Today we know that Dasosaurus is among the largest dinosaurs ever found in Brazil," said paleontologist Leonardo Kerber from the Federal University of Santa Maria, who participated in the study. Analysis showed that the closest known relative of the new species is Garumbatitan morellensis, previously found in Spain. Scientists believe that the ancestors of the Brazilian dinosaur originated in Europe and then, about 130 million years ago, reached present-day South America through northern Africa, when the Atlantic Ocean had not yet separated these continents.