Fossils found in Japan in 1990s hint at a new mosasaur species
Researchers from Okayama University of Science and partner institutions announced Wednesday that fossils of a mosasaur discovered in Osaka Prefecture in the early 1990s may belong to a previously unknown species, Qazinform News Agency cites Kyodo.
The remains, found in Kaizuka between 1990 and 1992 and stored at the Natural History Museum in Kishiwada City, had long gone unexamined due to technical limitations. Recent advances allowed scientists to clean and study the specimens, revealing the tip of an upper jaw, a feature never before identified in Japan, along with other skeletal fragments.
Analysis suggests the marine reptile measured about six meters in length and lacked a blood vessel groove seen in other mosasaurs, pointing to unique traits that could distinguish it as a new species.
Mosasaurs, carnivorous reptiles resembling giant crocodiles with flippers, thrived in oceans between 80 and 65 million years ago. This discovery adds fresh insight into Japan’s prehistoric marine ecosystems.
Noteworthy, lions lived in a wide area of the Japanese archipelago tens of thousands of years ago, as analysis of fossil specimens that were believed be of tigers were revealed to belong to an extinct lion species, a team of researchers said.