A new species of dinosaur has been identified in Montana, United States, and it looks a lot like “Zuul”, the monster in the 1984 Hollywood film Ghostbusters. The new type of fossil reptile has been named Zuul crurivastator (Zuul, destroyer of shins) after the creature in the film, reported The Guardian.

Scientists found the fossil in a quarry. It still has skin impressions on the tail and scales and the horny sheaths of spikes.

“The preservation of the fossil is truly remarkable,” said David Evans, curator of vertebrate palaeontology at the Royal Ontario Museum and the project lead. “Not only is the skeleton almost completely intact, but large parts of the bony armour in the skin are still in its natural position.”

Scientists believe that Zuul must have grown up to 20 feet and weighed around 2,500 kgs. The pre-historic animal walked the Earth around 75 million years ago.

Actor Dan Aykroyd poses in the Royal Ontario Museum's paleontology collections room with a fossil of Zuul crurivastator. Credit: Handout