Paleontologists have identified the remains of one of the largest dinosaurs in Europe. The dinosaur-theropod reached 10 meters in length and lived off the coast of England.
The remains of the found dinosaur belong to spinosaurids or spinosaurs. This is a family of carnivorous dinosaurs-theropods, which originated in the Jurassic period and became known in the Cretaceous period (157 – 70 million years ago). Paleontologists have found fossils of spinosaurs in many places around the world, including Asia, Europe, South America, Africa and Australia.
A new study has found the remains of one of the largest hunters on the south coast of England on the Isle of Wight. The new finds belong to a group of bipedal predatory dinosaurs with crocodile muzzles known as spinosaurs.
Named the “White Rock Spinosaurus” after the geological layer in which it was found, it was a predator of considerable size.
“It was a huge animal, more than 10 meters (33 feet) long, and judging by its size, it was probably the largest predatory dinosaur ever found in Europe,” said graduate student Chris Barker, who led the study.
Bones, including large pelvic and caudal vertebrae, were found near Compton China, on the southwest coast of the Isle of Wight.
“The most interesting thing is that we found fossils of this dinosaur in the geological formation Vectis, which is believed to be difficult to find dinosaur remains, because there are very few. But we think we found the youngest spinosaurus found in the UK, because this formation is 125 million years old, “said Neil Gostling of the University of Southampton.
This new animal confirms the fact that dinosaurs originated and diversified in Western Europe before becoming more common in other parts of the world.