When studying the most ferocious marine reptiles, many people are first reminded of the top predators in the Mesozoic ocean, the Mosasaurus. It is a crocodile-like toothed aquatic creature that caused a stir in the "Jurassic World" world. But a new study published April 27, 2022 in the journal Vertebrate Paleozoology, has just described ichthyosaurs unearthed from the Swiss Alps and potentially growing 10 feet (3 meters) in size.
Study Illustration - 1: Map of the geological formations of eastern Switzerland
Martin Sander, Tanja Wintrich, Pablo Romero Pérez de Villar (University of Bonn) and Heinz Furrer from the University of Zurich show this with possible vertebrae, rib fragments and a very large tooth.
Study with Figure - 2: Ichthyosauria indet teeth missing most of the crown
In the distant past, there was no shortage of gigantic animals in the ocean, such as the 56-foot/17-meter-long Mosasaurus and the nearly 60-foot/18-meter-long Megalodon.
Study Illustration - 3: Illustration of a field reduction of partially incomplete bones
However, the largest blue whale on Earth today (known to be nearly 100 feet/30 meters in length) does not fall into the category of marine reptiles.
Study with Picture - 4: Saste Ichthyosaurus / Dorsal Vertebral Vertebrae
As the fossil record shows, the images shared by the team are incomplete, making it impossible to accurately estimate how large giant ichthyosaurs could have grown, the areas inhabited by prehistory, and the habits of life.
Study with Figure - 5: Rib segment
Even so, paleontologists can infer these details to some extent, with reference to known different times and environments.
Study with Picture - 6: Seven Dorsal Vertebrae
Extrapolating from the remains of the Triassic period in the Swiss Alps, the ichthyosaurs may have become smaller. Dating back to the Jurassic period (spanning about 57 million years), it can be more than 40 feet (12 meters).
Study With Picture - 7: Close-up of the dorsal spine segment
The new study also points out that in the late Triassic period, toothed and toothless ichthyosaurs may have existed at the same time.
Study with picture - 8: The giant ichthyosaur vertebrae of the European Rhaetian
Finally, the difference in shape between the above samples and the previously recorded fossil teeth of the giant ichthyosaur also indicates the diversity of toothed ichthyosaur types/degrees of similarity.