Artist rendition of a Elasmosaurus-platyurus. Source: Dmitry Bogdanov
Scientists have unearthed a rare Jurassic era fossil of a plesiosaur in Western Queensland.
The elasmosaur — a type of plesiosaur — is a marine reptile that is estimated to have existed nearly 100 million years ago.
While a discovery like this is always rare, this find has particular significance since it is it the first time scientists have found this type of fossil with its head still attached.
A Paleontologist at the Queensland Museum, Dr Espen Knutsen, says that usually when a fossil like this is found the head it detached from the body due to the considerable length of the reptile’s neck.
“Very, very rarely you’ll find a body and head together,” he said.
“Because the head is so far away from the body at the end of this little neck, that’s one of the first things that gets disarticulated from the rest of the skeleton.”
Dr Knutsen also says that this fossil should help follow scientists to better understand the evolutionary process of this ancient marine reptile.
“It’s impossible to overstate how important this is because a lot of the Elasmosaurs we’re finding in the area are very early examples of the species, and this will give us insight into the evolution of this group,” he said.
“You can spend years in the field and not necessarily find the thing you need to unlock the answers to those questions you have … but it seems like we’ll be able to draw some lines under some of those unknowns,”
The Queensland Museum Network chief executive Jim Thompson agreed with Dr Knutsen’s belief that unearthing of this fossil will add a valuable amount of knowledge for scientists studying this area.
“This really is the golden age of dinosaur and marine reptile hunting in Queensland,” he said.
“Putting all these pieces together tells a really fantastic story of how the Earth has evolved.
“That gives us a lot of ability to understand the biodynamics of these types of animals, how they move, what sort of environments they need to be in and how a skeleton is put together.”
