Two new species of dinosaurs, ancient creatures whose fossils are frequently encountered but whose existence is suspected, have been discovered. Fossils of the aforementioned species were found on the Isle of Wight, England. It is estimated that giant creatures lived in this region 125 million years ago.
Paleontologists state that both species belonging to the spinosauridae family, whose fossils and skeletons consisting of 50 bones took years to be extracted, had a frightening appearance, measuring 9 meters in length and 1 meter in skulls.
Names of new species are as scary as their looks
The name of the species Ceratosuchops inferodios means “a heron bird with horns and crocodile head from hell”, while Riparvenator milnerae means “Milner riverside hunter”.
After fossil collectors found two skulls, the dinosaur museum on the island managed to unearth a large tail fossil from the same area. Fossils belonging to another dinosaur of the same family, Baryonyx, were found in England in 1983.
“The skull we found is different from and from Baryonyx,” said Chris Baker, PhD, a PhD student.
“We knew that dinosaurs resembling Baryonyx were waiting to be discovered on the Isle of Wight,” said Darren Naish, a dinosaur expert from the research team. But it was also a big surprise for us to find them one after another.
Experts think the spinosauridae family originated in Europe and later spread to Asia, Africa, and South America. The curator of the dinosaur museum, Dr. Martin Munt states that with the latest fossils, the Isle of Wight reinforces its position as one of the places with the highest number of dinosaurs in Europe.
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