Huge Sea Monster Discovered In Dorset
The skull of a huge sea monster which lived and hunted in Dorset 150 million years ago, was discovered recently.
The huge skull, measuring 6ft-long, is of a pliosaur, one of the biggest carnivorous creatures the world has ever seen.
The beautifully preserved skull was excavated from a cliff.
CGI, created by BBC Studios, shows what the giant predator would have looked like when it terrorised the seas in the time of the dinosaurs.
The pliosaur was the ultimate killing machine and at 10-12m long, it was the apex predator in the ocean.
The skull is longer than most humans are tall, which gives you a sense of how big the creature must have been overall.
It had an incredible 130 teeth - its bite is thought to have been twice that of a great white shark.
Sir David Attenborough is narrating a new documentary about this discovery called 'Attenborough and the Giant Sea Monster,' which is coming out early 2024.
The exciting discovery was made when fossil enthusiast Phil Jacobs was walking along the rocky beaches of Kimmeridge Bay last year when one morning he discovered a jaw of a giant pliosaur.
The site is renowned for its fossils and features some of the most important geological discoveries on the Jurassic Coast.
Dr. Steve Etches MBE, Museum Founder and Head of Collections at the museum said: "This really is the most complete Pliosaur skull that has been discovered to date.
”It is one of, if not the most important specimen ever to come out from the Kimmeridge clay, and globally, this is one of the best specimens you'll see".
According to local palaeontologist Steve Etches, there isn't a specimen anywhere else to match it.
"It's one of the best fossils I've ever worked on. What makes it unique is it's complete," he told BBC.
The lower jaw and upper skull are fused together just as they would have been in the creature's life.
Such an incredibly detailed connection is a rarity worldwide.
The skull is now on display at the Museum of Jurassic Marine Life in Kimmeridge, eight miles south of Wareham, Dorset.
Reacting to the images on social media, someone said: “The dolphin’s didn't have a chance! Dinosaur’s are pretty fascinating.”
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