Giant 'sea monster' fossil is one of the largest of its kind

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National Geographic
@NatGeo
A newly found fossil skeleton of a marine reptile called an ichthyosaur helps reveal the evolutionary history of one of the largest predators in the prehistoric ocean

Giant 'sea monster' fossil is one of the largest of its kind
The roughly 30-foot-long fossil found in England offers new clues to how ichthyosaurs evolved into marine titans.
nationalgeographic.com
5:32 PM · Jan 9, 2022

https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/giant-sea-monster-fossil-is-one-of-the-largest-of-its-kind

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In the winter chill of January 2021, Joe Davis found something astonishing at the Rutland Water Nature Reserve in England. He had gone out to drain a lagoon on the property, part of his work as conservation team leader at the reserve, when he noticed some large, fossilized bones sticking out of the ground.

At first it seemed that these were parts of a huge dinosaur. But when University of Manchester paleontologist Dean Lomax received an email with snapshots of the find, he immediately knew that Davis had found an enormous sea reptile called an ichthyosaur. From the outset, Lomax says, it was apparent that the Rutland find might be something very special.

Ichthyosaurs coexisted with dinosaurs, but these seagoing reptiles were entirely different creatures. They evolved from land reptiles during the Triassic period, over 246 million years ago. Ichthyosaurs became more streamlined and fish-like over time, and diverse species plied the seas until about 95 million years ago.

Many ichthyosaurs were comparable in size to today’s sharks, dining on fish, squid, and other small prey. Some were apex predators capable of chowing down on other large marine reptiles. Until now, the biggest ichthyosaurs on record have been from the Triassic, between 250 and 201 million years ago.

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[Goonch]

1. ;-{)🖖‍

[Cracklin Charlie]

2. Some friends of mine owned some land.

There was a spot that was always wet. They hired someone to excavate the area, and found a mastodon.