New Fossil Evidence Reveals Spinosaurus Was Aquatic Predator in Ancient Sahara

Examination of this new fossil reveals that its flexible tail, similar to that of the newt, was adapted for hunting in water. Scientists deduce that this dinosaur would have known an aquatic life, reports The Times. According to the same source, it is the only recorded aquatic dinosaur, which would have "terrorized the rivers of the Sahara during the Cretaceous."

"In addition to the vertebrate’s tail, other features such as the high position of the nostrils, the significant weight of the bones, the short legs and the paddle-shaped feet, confirm the thesis of a life spent in the water rather than on land," details David Unwin, a teacher in paleobiology at the University of Leicester in the United Kingdom.

After this discovery, a team based at Harvard University has produced a virtual model of the swimming Spinosaurus. This comprehensive study was published in the journal Nature. According to Dr. Nizar Ibrahim of the University of Detroit in the United States, the study "challenges the idea that dinosaurs never invaded the aquatic environment." "This dinosaur hunted its prey in the water and did not just wait for them in shallow areas," he revealed.