New species of Jurassic 'sword dragon' found in UK / Photo: © UNIVERSITY OF MANCHESTER/AFP
-
Pulitzers honor damning coverage of Trump and his policies
-
LA fire suspect had grudge against wealthy: prosecutors
-
US-Iran ceasefire on brink as UAE reports attacks
-
Stars shine at Met Gala, fashion's biggest night
-
Blake Lively, Justin Baldoni agree to end lengthy legal battle
-
Dolly Parton cancels Las Vegas shows over health concerns
-
Wu Yize: China's 'priest' who conquered the snooker world
-
China's Wu Yize wins World Snooker Championship for first time
-
Broadway theater blaze forces 'Book of Mormon' to close
-
Advantage Arsenal as Man City held in six-goal Everton thriller
-
Roma hammer Fiorentina to remain in Champions League hunt
-
MLB Tigers star pitcher Skubal to undergo elbow surgery
-
No.6 Morikawa withdraws from final PGA Championship tuneup
-
Ukraine and Russia declare separate truces
-
Arteta warns Atletico will face Arsenal 'beasts' in Champions League
-
OpenAI co-founder under fire in Musk trial over $30 bn stake
-
US says downed Iranian missiles and drones, destroyed six boats
-
Amazon to ship stuff for any business, not just its own merchants
-
Swastikas daubed on NY Jewish homes, synagogues: police
-
Passengers stranded on cruise off Cape Verde following suspected virus deaths
-
Colombian guerrillas offer peace talks with Petro successor
-
Britney Spears admits reckless driving in plea deal
-
Health emergency on the MV Hondius: what we know
-
US downs Iran missiles and drones, destroys six of Tehran's boats
-
Simeone laughs off 'cheaper' Atletico hotel switch before Arsenal clash
-
Rohit, Rickelton keep Mumbai in the hunt
-
What is hantavirus, and can it spread between humans?
-
Britney Spears admits to reckless driving in plea deal
-
Two dead as car ploughs into crowd in Germany's Leipzig
-
Ujiri hired as president of NBA's Mavericks
-
McFarlane backs Chelsea flops after woeful Forest defeat
-
Demi Moore joins Cannes Festival jury
-
Two dead after car ploughs into people in Germany's Leipzig: mayor
-
China's Wu holds slender lead in World Snooker Championship final
-
Mosley fired as coach after Magic's first-round NBA playoff exit
-
Stars set for Met Gala, fashion's biggest night
-
Forest sink woeful Chelsea to boost survival bid
-
Oil prices jump as Iran attacks UAE, US warships enter Hormuz
-
France launches one-euro university meals for all students
-
French TV defend Champions Cup video referee after Van Graan criticism
-
Former France, England duo called up by Fiji for Nations Championship
-
US Supreme Court temporarily restores mail access to abortion pill
-
3 dead in Colombia monster truck show crash
-
Mysterious world beyond Pluto may have an atmosphere: astronomers
-
UniCredit raises capital ahead of Commerzbank takeover bid
-
A year into Merz government, German far right stronger than ever
-
French scholars seek to resurrect Moliere with AI play
-
Allies jolted on defence as Trump pulls troops from Germany
-
Passengers isolating on cruise after Cape Verde ban over suspected virus deaths
-
Famed cartoonist Chappatte calls medium a 'barometer' of freedom
New species of Jurassic 'sword dragon' found in UK
A skeleton found on Britain's Jurassic Coast has been identified as a new species of ichthyosaur, a type of prehistoric marine reptile that once ruled the seas, scientists said Friday.
Comparable in size to a dolphin, the ichthyosaur has been named Xiphodracon goldencapensis, or the "Sword Dragon of Dorset", after the English county where the near-complete skeleton was discovered.
It is "the only known example of its kind in existence and helps to fill an important gap in the evolutionary fossil record of ichthyosaurs", the University of Manchester said.
Ichthyosaur expert Dean Lomax, an honorary research fellow at the university, led the three-strong team of paleontologists who carried out the analysis.
Ichthyosaurs were reptiles who spent their lives under water. They are not considered to have been dinosaurs.
The sword dragon dates back to the Pliensbachian period, which occurred around 190 million years ago.
The skeleton was discovered near Golden Cap, in Dorset, in 2001, but has only recently been analysed by palaeontologists.
It includes a skull with a huge eye socket and a long sword-like snout.
Scientists said the animal would have been about three metres long and would have eaten fish and squid.
The research was published on Friday in the Papers in Palaeontology journal.
The skeleton is due to go on display at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada.
L.Janezki--BTB
