(ORDO NEWS) — Judging by the fragments found by paleontologists, the spinosaurid gained more than 10 meters in length and was perhaps the largest of the predatory reptiles of the Cretaceous period.
Fragments of fossilized bones belonging to an unknown large spinosaurus have been found on the Isle of Wight in the English Channel.
According to paleontologists, this is the largest carnivorous dinosaur ever found in Europe. About this Chris Barker (Chris Barker) and his colleagues from the University of Southampton write in an article published in the journal PeerJ .
The unique find was made by local enthusiast Nick Chase, who was looking for dinosaurs in the chalk cliffs of the Isle of Wight.
Only a few individual bones and their fragments were found, but they allowed scientists to date them to about 125 million years old and estimate the size of the ancient reptile. “It was a huge animal, exceeding 10 meters in length,” says Chris Barker, “perhaps the largest carnivorous dinosaur ever found in Europe.”
Judging by the specimens found, the dinosaur belonged to spinosaurids – bipedal predators, which were characterized by an elongated “crocodile” jaw with conical teeth, convenient for hunting aquatic animals.
Some had a dorsal crest, apparently acting as a thermostat. Spinosaurids belonged to the theropod group, which included such notables as tyrannosaurs, although they did not grow to that size.
So the new representative, despite its impressive length, was unlikely to have a mass close to tyrannosaurs. Whether he had a crest, it is impossible to say from the available samples, just as it is impossible so far to conduct a complete description of the new species. So far, it has been called the White Rock Spinosaurid.
According to scientists, the find may be another evidence in favor of the fact that spinosaurids appeared on the territory of present-day Western Europe, from where they then spread to larger spaces.
No wonder other finds of these predators were made on the same Isle of Wight, including the “crocodile-faced hellish heron” ( Ceratosuchops inferodios ), which we have already talked about.
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