Crocodile skull found on Jurassic coast is from a previously unknown species

The prehistoric creature – a forerunner of modern saltwater crocodiles – would have measured 3.5 metres from nose to tail

The fossilised skull of an ancient beast that snapped at dinosaurs from the swamps of Swanage belongs to a previously unknown species of crocodile.

A passing expert chanced upon the well-preserved skull – somewhat flattened from 130m years in limestone – when it was exposed by a rock fall on the Dorset coast in 2007. In the five years since, researchers at Bristol University have pored over the specimen and compared it with other fossils, before finally declaring the creature a species new to science.

The metre-long skull was the dangerous front end of a forerunner of modern saltwater crocodiles, measuring 3.5 metres from nose to tail. The reptile fed on fish, turtles and other creatures in the warm swamps and lagoons that dotted tropical forests stalked by dinosaurs, Read More