For a long time, people have been influenced by the image of dinosaurs on the screen, so that the T-rex is considered to be the top of many dinosaur species. According to archaeological research, T-rex is indeed qualified to stand at the top of the food chain. The length of an adult T-rex is generally more than 10 meters, and the amazing bite force is enough to tear all animals in half. These two points alone are enough to make humans worship this dinosaur. But it is not the strongest kind of carnivorous dinosaurs, and the stronger one may be Spinosaurus.
Compared with T-Rex, Spinosaurus is less famous, which is inseparable from the actual archaeological situation. Judging from the past archaeological situation, paleontologists can obtain more information about Tyrannosaurus Rex from fossils than Spinosaurus, which helps humans to describe its image. The true appearance of Spinosaurus has not yet been determined. In past studies, paleontologists have identified Spinosaurus as a giant theropod carnivorous dinosaur in the mid-Cretaceous period based on the excavated Spinosaurus fossils. Most of people’s impressions of it come from the movie screen or various restored pictures. From these data, it can be seen that Spinosaurus is similar to other theropod carnivores except for the special dorsal spines on its back.
Paleontologists say new views about Spinosaurus
Baryonyx belongs to the Spinosaurus family in classification. Paleontologists discovered the existence of fish scales in the stomach of a Baryonyx fossil, and proposed that Baryonyx could fish. But that still doesn’t mean that spinosaurs are aquatic, because bears also like to fish, but they are not aquatic animal.
Later, some researchers proposed to use isotopes to test Spinosaurus, taking the results as one of the evidences to judge whether Spinosaurus is aquatic dinosaur. After isotopic analysis of Spinosaurus fossils, the researchers found that the isotopic distribution was closer to that of aquatic life.
In 2008, Nizar Ibrahim, a paleontologist at the University of Chicago, discovered a group of Spinosaurus fossils that were very different from known fossils at a mine in Monaco. This batch of fossils was formed in the late Cretaceous period. Through the study of Spinosaurus fossils, Ibrahim’s team believes that Spinosaurus’ body is longer and slender than currently known, with a mouth similar to that of a crocodile, and may have grown flippers. These features point out the Spinosaurus to be aquatic or amphibians.
In 2018, Ibrahim and his team found Spinosaurus fossils in Monaco again. This time they found a relatively well-preserved Spinosaurus tail vertebra and claws. The researchers analyzed Spinosaurus’ tail vertebrae in depth and found that it is more like a body part possessed by aquatic creatures. These findings provide further evidence that Spinosaurus was not entirely a terrestrial creature, but a dinosaur which can live in water.
Was Spinosaurus a terrestrial or aquatic dinosaur?
So is Spinosaurus terrestrial dinosaur, aquatic dinosaur, or amphibious dinosaur? Ibrahim’s research findings in the past two years have been enough to show that Spinosaurus is not a terrestrial creature in the full sense. Through research, his team found that Spinosaurus’ tail grew vertebrae in both directions, and if it was reconstructed, its tail would resemble a sail. In addition, Spinosaurus’ tail vertebrae were highly flexible in the horizontal dimension, which meant that they were able to fan their tails at large angles to generate swimming power. However, the question of the true identity of Spinosaurus has not yet been concluded. Because there is no evidence to support “Spinosaurus is completely an aquatic dinosaur”, so more paleontologists now believe that it may be an amphibious creature like crocodile.
All in all, paleontologists have made great efforts in the study of Spinosaurus, revealing the mystery of Spinosaurus little by little for the world. If there are no theories and discoveries that subvert the inherent cognition of human beings, I believe that most people still think that Spinosaurus and Tyrannosaurus Rex are terrestrial carnivores. What is the true face of Spinosaurus? Let us wait and see!
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Post time: Aug-05-2022