Fossil of 13-ft-long marine predator found inside larger animal: Study

A groundbreaking discovery that has changed narrative of life and death in prehistoric ocean has been me by identifying a complete torso of a 13-foot-long reptile inside a 16-foot-long dolphin-like reptile kwn as an ichthyosaur. As per newest study published in journal iScience, massive marine reptile swallowed a comparatively smaller reptile nearly 240 million years and n died shortly after.

fossils of both creatures, one inside of or remained locked until 2010 when scientists in southwestern China began ir excavation. Calling it ‘megapredator’ which is an animal that preys on or large animals, study elaborated on oldest kwn evidence for predation when a thalattosaur was found inside stomach of a Middle Triassic ichthyosaur in one to several pieces. As per study, many air-breathing predators have been significant components of entire marine ecosystem with several being considered as apex predators without direct evidence until w. 

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research has elaborate that nearly five-metre-long ichthyosaur h only grasping teeth and yet it mand to swallow body of a four-metre-long thalattosaur. Because direct evidence was unavailable, for longest time, researchers have been deriving diet of fossil marines based on shape of teeth and size of body. 

If a large species bears large teeth with cutting edges, y were considered to be apex predators in marine food chain. However, it was also identified by scientists that t all marine predators h sharp teeth but were larger in size. But ichthyosaur like Guizhouichthyosaurus that Ryosuke Motani, a palaeontologist at University of California examined was of a smaller size. 

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Mesozoic era's first 'megapredator'

se ancient marine animals were kwn to have preyed on slippery, squid-like animals such as cephalopods using ir grasping teeth. Making research more significant, ne of aquatic animals alive during that time was thought to have tackled a large prey. Apex predators were believed to have evolved only until later such as killer whale. w in newest research, Motani has suggested that ichthyosaurs were among Mesozoic era’s first ‘megapredators’ and reportedly ted that y were feeding on animals bigger than humans. 

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