Sea monster skull reveals terrifying predator that once lived on Earth

March 20, 2022 14:00 GMT+7

Rodolfo Salas, head of the department of paleontology at the National University of Peru, was part of the team that unearthed an intact skull about 36 million years old.

Sea monster skull reveals terrifying predator that once lived on Earth

The giant skull is about 1.35 meters long, preserved intact with scary sharp teeth. Scientists think this is a mammal, possibly a fish, with modern descendants of whales and dolphins.

This animal was discovered in the Ocucaje desert in southern Peru. The desert landscape was once a shallow sea millions of years ago, the sand dunes contain a large number of outstanding primitive mammal remains.

It is not a reptile but has a very long body and can move like a giant snake. Scientists dubbed the ‘Ocucaje predator’, this is a top predator, with a maximum length of up to 12 meters, equivalent to the height of a 4-storey building. It uses its large strong teeth to eat tuna, sharks, and schools of sardines.

A well-preserved sea monster skull in the Ocucaje desert of southern Peru.

Rodolfo Salas said: “This find is very special because the state of preservation is quite intact. It was one of the largest predators at that time. The Peruvian sea was warm, thanks to this fossil discovery, they I can recreate the history of the Peruvian sea.”

The Ocucaje desert contains many valuable ancient fossils, providing evidence of evolution 42 million years ago, the researchers said.

Other fossils found there include four-legged dwarf whales, dolphins, sharks, and other species from the Miocene (23 million to 5 million years ago). Currently, the fossil is on display at the Natural History Museum.

Hoang Dung (synopsis)