Massive Prehistoric Sea Monster Discovered in Morocco and Japan

Thalassotitan atrox. This is the specimen uncovered in Morocco by researchers from the University of Bath. Considered one of the most dangerous aquatic predators, this species is a little smaller and has conical teeth, formidable for prey, we are told in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. It is a kind of "Komodo dragon crossed with a great white shark crossed with a T. rex crossed with a killer whale," describes one of the paleontologists who made this discovery.

In Asia, teams of paleontologists have discovered near the Aridagawa River, southwest of the Japanese island of Honshu, Megapterygius wakayamaensi. This huge reptile, fossilized for about 72 million years, measures 5 meters in length (for 13 to 17 meters as an adult, making it one of the longest known reptiles), 121 vertebrae, a 70-centimeter-long skull... and weighs nearly 14 tons. The mosasaur has a dolphin-like body, an alligator-like mouth, four paddle-shaped flippers and a long tail.

Like the dorsal fin of sharks, that of the mosasaur is absent from other mosasaur-type individuals, and the posterior fins are longer than the anterior ones. This specimen hunted in the warmest waters of the planet 100 to 66 million years ago, that is, during the Cretaceous period. Like the dinosaurs, the animal disappeared during the Cretaceous-Tertiary mass extinction 66 million years ago.