Full-body fossil of a 240-million-year-old reptile unveiled/National Museums Scotland
2024.02.24 Sat posted at 20:24 JST
(CNN) Following the discovery of a new fossil, scientists have unveiled the entire body of a 240 million-year-old dragon for the first time. The National Museum of Scotland (NMS) announced this on the 23rd.
The 5-meter-long reptile, which is believed to have lived in China during the Triassic period, was first discovered in 2003, but after studying five new specimens, scientists They are now able to grasp the overall picture of the organism in question. The creature has been named Dinokephalosaurus orientalis.
Dr Nick Fraser, head of natural sciences at the NMS, said the fossil, which was presented as a complete piece, provided an “amazing complete specimen from the tip of the snout to the tip of the tail.” responded to CNN’s interview.
The fossil has a long body that resembles a figure eight, “very similar to a Chinese dragon,” Fraser said.
The discovery of fossils has helped shed light on the reality of this mysterious creature. An international team of researchers from Scotland, Germany, the United States and China compiled their findings and published them in the journal of the Royal Academy of Edinburgh.
The fossils were first discovered in 2003 by Li Chun, a professor at the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology at the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, when he visited a small village in southern China’s Guizhou province. This was revealed by Professor Fraser, a colleague of the professor. By combining these bone fragments, Lee discovered the existence of a new species of reptile.
An imaginary drawing of marine reptiles that lived in ancient times
Now, new fossils have been discovered, and it is believed that this creature had 32 vertebrae. These bones formed an extremely long neck that was likely useful for catching fish. However, scientists are still unsure about the exact function of the long neck.
Fraser said it was possible that the animal preyed on prey by inserting its long neck into crevices and crevices in underwater rocks.
Traces of fish still remain in one of the fossilized abdomens. The researchers note in their paper that this feature, along with its fin-like legs, suggests that it was well adapted to the marine environment.
They added that the long neck also resembled Tanystropheus hydroides, another mysterious marine reptile that appeared around the same time.
Fraser says it’s difficult to learn about Triassic creatures such as Dinokephalosaurus and Tanystropheus because no modern analogues exist.
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2024-02-24 11:24:00