A terrifying sea lizard roaming the shores of Africa 66 million years ago had shark-like deadly teeth that could cut fish in half with a bite.
- Scientists have discovered the fossilized remains of a new species of mosasaur
- The mosasuars were giant lizards that lived next to the dinosaurs
- It was found that this species had shark-like teeth that gave it a deadly bite
- The discovery suggests that mosasaur diversity reached its peak just before the asteroid that killed dinosaurs attacked 66 million years ago.
A prehistoric reptile that roamed the coasts of Africa 66 million years ago had shark-like deadly teeth that could cut a fish in half with a bite, a study has revealed.
Researchers have discovered the fossilized remains of a new species of mosasaur, an ancient marine lizard from the time of the dinosaurs.
This species was found to have shark-like teeth that gave it a deadly bite.
The discovery adds to the diversity of marine reptiles in the late Cretaceous and suggests that their diversity reached its peak just before the asteroid that killed dinosaurs arrived 66 million years ago, according to researchers.
Researchers have discovered the fossilized remains of a new species of mosasaur: an ancient marine lizard from the time of the dinosaurs
The fossilized remains of the new species, called Xenodens calminechari, were discovered in the Maastrichtian phosphates of Morocco by researchers at the University of Bath.
Dr Nick Longrich, senior professor at the Milner Center for Evolution at the University of Bath and lead author of the study, said: ‘66 million years ago, Africa’s coasts were the most dangerous seas in the world.
‘The diversity of predators there doesn’t look like anything you see anywhere else on the planet.
“The new mosasaur is added to a list of fast – growing marine reptiles known since the last Cretaceous of Morocco, which at that time was submerged under a tropical sea.
“There lived a great diversity of mosasaurs. Some were giant predators and deep diving, like modern sperm whales, others with huge teeth and up to ten meters long, they were main predators like killer whales, others ate seafood like modern sea otters, and then there was the strange little Xenodens.
They coexisted with long-necked plesiosaurs, giant sea turtles, and saber-toothed fish.
Although the sea lizard was the same size as a small porpoise, its sharp teeth would have allowed it to attack large fish, cutting them in half and chopping large ones.
“The new mosasaur adds another dangerous predator to the mix.”
Although the sea lizard was the same size as a small porpoise, its sharp teeth would have allowed it to strike above its weight, cutting fish in half and taking large bites from larger animals.
“They’re like the knives sold in that old late-night TV ad: anything will be handed out,” Dr. Longrich said.
Mosasaurs lived next to dinosaurs before the asteroid killed and wiped out 90% of all species on Earth.
A reconstruction of his skull reveals that his teeth were well packaged, creating a serrated effect
However, the new study indicates that the ecosystem was not in decline before the asteroid arrived, and instead it is likely that marine reptiles are expanding in diversity.
Dr. Nour-Eddine Jalil, of the National Museum of Natural History in Paris and Cadi Ayyad University in Marrakech, said: “A shark-toothed mosasaur is such an amazing new adaptation of mosasaurs that it looked like a fantastic creature outside of an artist’s imagination.
‘Xenodens calminechari is another proof of the extraordinary paleobiodiversity of the phosphate sea.
“It’s as if nature is struggling to find all the combinations for an ever finer exploitation of food sources.”