50 ft long reptile fossils

[jiang bao]

I thought this was cool. Unfortunately none of these super giants survived to this day.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20090316/...sil_seamonster

OSLO (Reuters) – A giant fossil sea monster found in the Arctic and known as "Predator X" had a bite that would make T-Rex look feeble, scientists said Monday.

The 50 ft (15 meter) long Jurassic era marine reptile had a crushing 33,000 lbs (15 tonnes) per square inch bite force, the Natural History Museum of Oslo University said of the new find on the Norwegian Arctic archipelago of Svalbard.

"With a skull that's more than 10 feet long you'd expect the bite to be powerful but this is off the scale," said Joern Hurum, an associate professor of vertebrate paleontology at the museum who led the international excavation in 2008.

"It's much more powerful than T-Rex," he said of the pliosaur reptile that would have been a top marine predator. Tyrannosaurus Rex was a top land carnivore among dinosaurs.

The scientists reconstructed the predator's head and estimated the force by comparing it with the similarly-shaped jaws of alligators in a park in Florida.

"The calculation is one of the largest bite forces ever calculated for any creature," the Museum said of the bite, estimated with the help of evolutionary biologist Greg Erickson from Florida State University.

Predator X's bite was more than 10 times more powerful than any modern animal and four times the bite of a T-Rex, it said of the fossil, reckoned at 147 million years old. Alligators, crocodiles and sharks all now have fearsome bites.

The teeth of the pliosaur, belonging to a new species, were a foot (30 cms) long. The scientists reconstructed the reptile from a partial skull and 20,000 fragments of skeleton.

The pliosaur, estimated to have weighed 45 tonnes, was similar to but had more massive bones than another fossil sea monster found on Svalbard in 2007, also estimated at 50 feet long and the largest pliosaur to date.

"It's not complete enough to say it's really bigger than 15 meters," Hurum said of the new fossil.

Hurum had said of the first fossil pliosaur that it was big enough to chomp on a small car. He said the bite estimates for the latest fossil forced a rethink.

"This one is more like it could crush a Hummer," he said. referring to General Motors' large sport utility vehicle.

Among other findings were that the pliosaur had a small thin brain shaped like that of a great white shark, according to scans by Patrick Druckenmiller of the University of Alaska.

Pliosaurs preyed upon squid-like animals, fish, and other marine reptiles. Predator X had four huge flippers to propel itself along, perhaps using just two at cruising speeds and the others for a burst of speed.

[remember_Cedric]

Thanks for sharing, Baobao.

Welcome to Jurassic Park!!

A few years ago, I've read an article about an archeologist (sp?) digging up bones of T-rex with tissues in it that is still alive.

With reading this article, are we getting closer to a real man-made Jurassic Park soon?

[CC]

10x more powerful compared to any existing animal?

Does that include the Sperm Whale?

You know, despite all the extinct giant crocs and T-rexes and monster snakes and lizards from the past. The biggest living creature (blue whale) is still alive and well in the 21st century.

[yittz]

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/new...icle653453.ece

has comparisons of an ancient fish with bite pressure exerted by human, t-rex and the most powerful bite of living animal.

[remember_Cedric]

I've seen that Predator X in BBC's Walking With Sea Monster. Imagine one of them still lives today.

Yittz, can i say that is a relative of Piranha? Or the acestor?

One bigger than the other.

$this->handle_bbcode_img_match('http://www.greendiary.com/images/dino-era-sea-monster1_9.jpg') Oh gorgeous! Such a sexy thing!

What would be your response, if.....: As you walk quietly by a lake, river or something, suddenly this huge creature of the ancient caught your eyes?

[PJ]

What would be your response, if.....: As you walk quietly by a lake, river or something, suddenly this huge creature of the ancient caught your eyes?

I'd first snap a picture, then go pet it.

[remember_Cedric]

I'd first snap a picture, then go pet it.

Long'er, what if, it is a predator? Or, maybe it got offended when you snapped a picture of it, and came to you in an attacking stance?

[GuGu]

maybe it still does exist in the deepest part of the ocean? remember that some of the creatures we thought to have extinct are showing up lately. remember that shark that floated to the surface?

[PJ]

Long'er, what if, it is a predator? Or, maybe it got offended when you snapped a picture of it, and came to you in an attacking stance?

All animals are pettable-at-heart

[Guo Xiang]

maybe it still does exist in the deepest part of the ocean? remember that some of the creatures we thought to have extinct are showing up lately. remember that shark that floated to the surface?

Yep... there was this ancient fish thought to be extinct that showed up (caught by accident, I think), but scientists weren't able to trace it or take notes on its lifestyle and reproduction process as it lived too deep in the sea.

And the meat supposedly doesn't taste good.

Edited: The fish is Coelacanth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelacanth

[GuGu]

Yep... there was this ancient fish thought to be extinct that showed up (caught by accident, I think), but scientists weren't able to trace it or take notes on its lifestyle and reproduction process as it lived too deep in the sea.

And the meat supposedly doesn't taste good.

Edited: The fish is Coelacanth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelacanth

what was the name of that shark that was just came up to the surface to die? there was a little vdo clip of it too. i can't find the name of it. all i remember was it was hella ugly! hahhaa

[Guo Xiang]

what was the name of that shark that was just came up to the surface to die? there was a little vdo clip of it too. i can't find the name of it. all i remember was it was hella ugly! hahhaa

Was it this?

http://www.reuters.com/news/video/vi...y?videoId=4017

And yes... it's fugly.

[GuGu]

yes, that one.

[jiang bao]

Can a creature as large as predator x survive on the ocean bottom? The water pressure and gravity exerted on a body mass like that deep on the ocean floor would be enormous, no?

[remember_Cedric]

All animals are pettable-at-heart

In my mind, I visualise Long'er calmly petting a huge, predatrous-looking creature, like Predator X, after contentedly snapped a picture of it. Then, shows a peace or victory sign with a wide grin then quickly carried his feet and ran away

Yep... there was this ancient fish thought to be extinct that showed up (caught by accident, I think), but scientists weren't able to trace it or take notes on its lifestyle and reproduction process as it lived too deep in the sea.

And the meat supposedly doesn't taste good.

Edited: The fish is Coelacanth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coelacanth

what was the name of that shark that was just came up to the surface to die? there was a little vdo clip of it too. i can't find the name of it. all i remember was it was hella ugly! hahhaa

Ladies, I saw the same odd-looking ancient shark too. It appear to swim in a manner like half-dying before it really died. It puts to wonder, how long did it actually lived? Was it mentioned anywhere?

Can a creature as large as predator x survive on the ocean bottom? The water pressure and gravity exerted on a body mass like that deep on the ocean floor would be enormous, no?

Hmmm, unless there was a huge change in the water pressure and gravity throughout years and times. Predator X appears to look like a tough survivor killer that can withstand the rough environment. Unless it fails to fill up its stomach? I mean, look at it's agility! The one thing that kills any living thing is running out of food.



The moral of the story is, animals face extinction. We so hope to see the creatures that is rumoured to be extincted, and when we catch one, it's like a sight of wonder. Some animals, we have now, already adding to that category. We can do our part to minimise the damage, while we still can.

[jiang bao]

Did the pleiosaurs live in deep water at or near ocean bottom or did they live in shallower water?

[Guo Xiang]

Ladies, I saw the same odd-looking ancient shark too. It appear to swim in a manner like half-dying before it really died. It puts to wonder, how long did it actually lived? Was it mentioned anywhere?

Wiki said the shark (which was pregnant) was captured and placed into a tank but died after only a few hours. Its death was attributed to its inability to survive in warmer water as it lived in the colder deep ocean water.