Megan Jacobs, a researcher at the University of Portsmouth and a PhD student at Baylor University in Texas who has worked on ichthyosaur for years, called it a new genus and species.
The two-meter-long Ichthyosaurus, which lived two million million years ago, has been dubbed the “Iches Sea Dragon” (Thalesodraco Achesi).
H.C. said in a press release published by the University of Portsmouth on Wednesday that he was honored that the discovery was named after him.
“It is remarkable that new species of ichthyosaurus have yet to be discovered, which shows how diverse these incredible animals were in the Swaraj Jurassic Sea,” Achez added.
Scientists have now identified five species of ichthyosaur from the late Jurassic period in the UK.
They are commonly known as sea dragons because of their large teeth and eyes.
According to Jacobs, the remains of the ichthyosaur of this period are rare, but this one was well preserved because it settled on a very soft shore when it died.
This meant that the front of his body sank into the mud, protecting him from scavengers who ate his tail.
In a press release, Jacobs said, “Thalesodraco ichesi is a beautifully preserved ichthyosaur, making it more interesting by maintaining soft tissue.”
Ichthyosaurs were very suitable for catching fish with big eyes, well-shaped body and coniferous sea predators.
The newly identified species has deep deep ribcage, small flippers and smooth teeth, which distinguishes it from other ichthyosaurs.
“It looks like a sack that encloses with a drawstring,” Jacob told CNN.
Thalesodraco HC would probably have got the rac out of the water using its tail instead of its tail, Jacobs added, and its deep danda ribcage is associated with a large lung that would have allowed it to enter a deep dive underwater.
The newly discovered species has even larger eyes than other ichthyosaurs, covering almost a quarter of its entire skull, which would have allowed it to see under deep water under low light conditions, Jacobs said, adding that its small smooth teeth are probably used for catching. . Soft prey like squid.
This is the smallest ichthyosaur ever. The most well-known ichthyosaurus lived in North America during the Triassic period and had skulls about 10 meters larger – about five meters long – than the Th and લેe Lesodraco Ichસીe.
The fossils will be on display at the Icchus Collection, a museum in Dorset, as well as many other finds from Ichchus.
The research was published in the journal Plow One on Wednesday.
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