In a stunning discovery, a fossil jawbone of an Ichthyosaur, possibly the largest marine reptile ever found, has been unearthed on a beach in southwest England. This colossal creature, estimated to have stretched about 25 meters in length, equivalent to the size of a modern-day blue whale.
The UK’s reputation for revealing ancient fossils has once again been solidified, with the recent identification setting new records. The finding dates back to 2020 when a father-daughter duo, Justin and Ruby Reynolds, stumbled upon fragments of a gigantic fossil jawbone exceeding two meters in length on a picturesque beach in Blue Anchor, Somerset.
Recognizing the importance of their discovery, the duo contacted Dr. Dean Lomax, a palaeontologist from the University of Manchester, who had previously identified a similar, albeit less preserved jawbone found by seasoned fossil collector Paul de la Salle in 2016 also in Somerset.
Analyzed the two fossils are indeed from the same colossal Ichthyosaur species, speculated to have grown up to 25 meters in length. Designated as Ichthyotitan severnensis, translated as the “giant fish lizard of the Severn,” this marine reptile is now the focus of intense scientific interest.
Going forward, the preservation of more comprehensive examinations of the bone structures present in the newly discovered fossils from Blue Anchor highlighted that this particular specimen was still in its growth phase, raising intriguing questions about the potential size limit of these prehistoric ocean behemoths.
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