Scientists have identified what was probably the largest marine reptile to ever swim the seas – a creature longer than two buses.
The creature lived about 202 million years ago along with the dinosaurs.
His fossilized jaw was found in 2016 by a fossil hunter on a beach in Somerset, United Kingdom. In 2020, a father and daughter found another similar jaw.
Experts now say the fossils come from two giant ichthyosaur reptileswhich could have been 25 meters long.
That’s bigger than a huge pliosaur whose skull was found embedded in the cliffs of Dorset, south-west England, and which featured in a recent David Attenborough documentary, The Giant Sea Monster (“The giant sea monster”).
“Based on the size of the jaws, one of them more than a meter long and the other two meters long, we can calculate that the entire animal measured about 25 meters long, about as much as a blue whale,” said Dean Lomax, a paleontologist at the University of Bristol and author of the scientific article on the matter published this Wednesday.
He stated that, however, more evidence, such as a complete skull and skeleton, is needed to confirm the exact size of the creature, because only a few fragments have been found so far.
The giant ichthyosaur disappeared in a mass extinction and the ichthyosaurs that lived afterward never reached that enormous size again, he added.
fossil hunters
The first glimpse of the creature came in 2016, when amateur fossil hunter Paul de la Salle was scouring the beaches of Somerset.
De la Salle has been collecting fossils for 25 years after being inspired by the famous fossilist Steve Etches.
While scouring the beach with his wife, Carol, he saw what turned out to be the find of a lifetime: the first known jawbone of this giant marine reptile.
When he spoke to Lomax, they suspected they might be on to an important discovery. They published their findings in 2018.
But they wanted more evidence to understand how big the creature had been.
“We’re keeping our fingers crossed that more discoveries will be made,” Lomax said. In 2020, a father and his daughter, Justin and Ruby Reynolds found what he was looking for.
“I was enormously impressed, very, very excited. I knew that right at that moment we had a second giant jaw from one of these enormous ichthyosaurs, like Paul’s,” Lomax said.
De la Salle ran to the beach and helped them discover more.
“I dug through all the thick mud. After about an hour, my shovel hit something solid and the bone came out perfectly preserved,” she recalled.
The team and family members continued searching for fragments of the second jaw; the last piece was found in 2022.
Ichthyotitan severnensis
The discovery gave them more evidence to estimate its size. They have now come to the conclusion that the huge animal is a new species of ichthyosaur, which they have named Ichthyotitan severnensiseither Severn giant lizardfish.
Lomax co-wrote the latest scientific paper with Ruby Reynolds, and said that one day the specimen he found might even be named Ruby.
The specimen De la Salle found has been in his garage for three years while the team analyzed it. It will soon be on public display at the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery, UK.
“I’ll be a little sad to say goodbye. I have come to know it and study it in great detail. But it’s also a relief because I won’t have to worry about it as much,” De la Salle said.
Lomax said the discovery highlights how important amateur fossil collectors are.
“Families and all kinds of people can make surprising discoveries. You don’t need to be a world expert. As long as you have a little patience and a good eye, you can make a discovery,” he stated.
Click here to read more stories from BBC News Mundo.
You can also follow us on Youtube, instagram, TikTok, x, Facebook and in our new whatsapp channelwhere you’ll find breaking news and our best content.
And remember that you can receive notifications in our app. Download the latest version and activate them.
- The scientist who studies people who shortly before dying “see” loved ones who have already died
- “We bought a zoo and our lives were turned upside down.”
- The incredible images of a forest revealed thanks to ultraviolet rays