Father-daughter time results in discovering the jaw of the largest marine reptile ever

A massive jaw found by a father and daughter on a beach in Somerset in the United Kingdom belonged to a newly discovered species. It is probably the largest known marine reptile that swam in Earth's oceans.

Justin and Ruby Reynolds, who live in Braunton in England, discovered fragments of the jawbone in May 2020 while looking for fossils on the beach at Blue Anchor in Somerset. Ruby, who was 11 years old at the time, spotted the first piece of bone, and then, together with her dad, they uncovered more pieces of it.

They immediately realized they had found something extraordinary and notified Dr Dean Lomax, a palaeontologist at the University of Manchester. Lomax then contacted fossil hunter Paul de la Salle. De la Salle discovered a similar ichthyosaur jaw in 2016 in nearby Lilstock. However, the one found at Blue Anchor was in better condition.

Scientists consider the blue whale to be the largest known swimming animal. The blue whale can reach up to about 34 metres in length. There is much to suggest that an ichthyosaur from 202 million years ago could rival it in size.

The ichthyosaur jaw itself measured over 2 metres in length. Scientists estimate that the marine reptile could measure over 25 metres, which is as long as two city buses.

The jaw of the giant reptile found in Somerset may be over 200 million years old and comes from the end of the Triassic period. Lomax and de la Salle linked the two fossils together, suspecting they could have belonged to the same marine reptile.

When I found the first jawbone, I knew it was something special. To have a second that confirms our findings is incredible. I am overjoyed — said de la Salle, quoted by CNN.

Ichthyotitan severnensis is the name of the newly discovered marine reptile. Ichthyosaurs, which resembled modern dolphins, first appeared around 250 million years ago. Over time, some of them evolved and became much larger. Around 202 million years ago, oceanic giants like the severnensis were probably the largest marine reptiles.

Scientists emphasized that further research is necessary to confirm the exact size of the severnensis. They hope that a complete skull or skeleton will be discovered in the future, allowing them to estimate its real size accurately.

Co-author Marcello Perillo from the University of Bonn suggests that the marine reptile was probably still growing at its death, indicating that an adult severnensis could have been larger than a blue whale. The discovery made by Reynolds and de la Salle will soon be displayed at the Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.