Western Venezuela has just gifted the scientific community with a new discovery, after a 20-year investigation, of a possible ancestor to the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

The discovery of the newest species, or at least the shin bone of the species, found in the region in 2013 dates back 200 million years -- or the first phase of the Jurassic period, the Guardian reported.

A group of international scientists made the discovery of the carnivorous dinosaur, estimated to be at least 6.5 feet long, and the name of the species is Tachiraptor Admirabilis.

A shin bone and part of a hip bone, which seems to have ties to the bird family, may also help shed light on the evolution of similarly hipped land dinosaur species, The New York Times reported.

It is an exciting discovery in part because of its location. South America has rarely been the site of fossil discoveries, and this is the first carnivorous species to be found on the continent, Discovery News reported. But that is because many paleontologists are not searching on the continent.

The countries in South America do not have as many remote exposed areas, like the Badlands of South Dakota.

The other known dinosaur to Venezuela is herbivore, the Laquintasaura, which is half the size of the new species.

Paleontologists suggest that the Tachiraptor likely preyed on this herbivore.

The lead study author, Max Langer, of the University of Sao Paulo in Brazil, told Fox the name of the new species was derived from three sources.

Tchira is the state where the fossil was found, near the town of La Grita, and raptor is Latin for thief. Adminrabilis comes from Simn Bolvar's Admirable Campaign, which is how Venezuela won independence from Spanish control near La Grita.

The discovery has encouraged the scientists to continue to search for more fossils in the Venezuela and South America. They will also be looking at similarly aged volcanic rock, like the ones were the new species was found, in Tanzania and Brazil.