There are few weird sea creatures we here at IFLScience can dissent and newgiant sea monstersfrom the Cretaceous period are not one of them . A new mintage of mosasaurid from the Maastrichtian age has been discovered in Morocco with sticker - like dentition and a bizarrely mold skull and even scientists have call it " unusual " .
The new discovery has been namedKhinjaria acutaand is a plioplatecarpus , a specialized subset of themosasaursthat were known to be speedy swimmers and specialised hunters . The international squad found the fossil in the Phosphates of Sidi Chennane , in the Oulad Abdoun Basin Khouribga Province in Morocco .
“ The phosphates of Morocco immerse us in the Upper Cretaceous sea during the latest geologic times of the dinosaurs ’ age . No deposit has provided so many fossils and so many species from this full point , ” explain Professor NE . Jalil of the Museum National d ’ Histoire Naturelle in Paris in a statement send to IFLScience .
All the better to eat you with!Image Credit: Longrich, N. R., Et al (2024) Cretaceous Research
The name comes from the Arabic word “ khinhar ” think dagger and the Latin word “ acuta ” signify sharp , referencing the large , sharp-worded teeth of the specimen . “ Some mosasaurs had teeth to pierce prey , others to cut , bust , or calf love . Now we haveKhinjaria , with a short brass full of huge , sticker - forge tooth , " said lead author Dr Nick Longrich of the University of Bath .
It would have swum around in what is now the Atlantic Ocean at the same timetriceratopswas roaming around on soil , before the end of the Cretaceous menstruation rough 66 million years ago . " This is one of the most diverse nautical faunas find anywhere , at any time in history , and it live just before the marine reptiles and the dinosaurs went extinct , ” Longrich said .
The specimen lie in of part of the skull , some vertebrate , part of the jaw , and the teeth . The squad thinks the nautical lizard would have been around the size of it of an killer at roughly 7 - 8 meters long ( 22 - 26 foot ) .
Analysis reveals thatKhinjaria acutais nearly related to another mintage , Goronyosaurus nigeriensis , and they both possess the strange appearance of having a shortsnoutand a long field at the back of the skull . The squad thinks that this unusual skull shape made the jaws of the mosasaur close slowly but with the say high bite force .
" The elongation of the posterior part of the skull which accommodated the jaw musculature suggests a horrific biting force out , ” said Professor Jalil . Based on the tooth sound structure they distrust thatKhinjarialikely feed on magnanimous fish species or even sharks or other mosasaurs .
While all of these factors of turgid teeth , large bite force , and large size suggest a predator , the researchers guess thatKhinkariahunted in a more strange way to avoid competing with other predators of that time . Based on the modest size of it of the centre sockets and the shape of the nozzle , using a signified of smell could have been of import in hound doings especially if hunting at dark or in murky waters .
Mosasaurs are reasonably well - studiedmarine predatorswell known from the dodo record for possessing different teeth and variation in skull shape , which suggests a blanket reach of diets and recess for these ancientmarine reptilesto occupy . The new study adds to grounds that ocean ecosystem were very different millions of years ago when they could suffer multiple apex predators eating large fair game , as opposed to now where just a few expectant predators like orcas and great Caucasian dominate .
The field is published inCretaceous Research .
