Dogs discover 190 million-year-old fossil Posted by Anita Froneman on 23 January 2020 Tags:England, fossil One pet owner got more than he bargained for when he took his dogs for a walk on the beach in December. While strolling, Jon Gopsill and his furry friends, Poppy and Sam, came across an unusual find in Somerset, UK. View this post on Instagram Dog walker discovers 65 million-year-old ichthyosaur skeleton on beach in Somerset https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2019/12/dog-walker-discovers-65-million-year.html#.XgoyE1QQU9o #palaeontology #fossils #ichthyosaur #uk A post shared by Ioannis Georgopoulos (@archaeonewsnet) on Jan 6, 2020 at 5:12am PST A fossil of an ichthyosaur, a prehistoric marine animal, was embedded in sand along the shoreline. Estimated to be 190 million years old, the fossil will go on display at The Museum of Somerset, according to BBC. According to Beth Jerrett of the South West Heritage Trust, the discovery of small fossils is fairly common but finding such a complete specimen is very rare. Only the head was missing from the 167-centimetre-long fossil. Palaeontologist Dr Andy King told BBC Radio Somerset that the fossil had been nicknamed Poppy, after Gopsill’s dog, and it was undergoing cleaning. ‘The next stage after that is to consolidate and harden the rock that [it] is in and it really is only at that last stage that we’ll have an indication about what the species is and whether or not it is new. It’s a very significant part of the local heritage.’ The ichthyosaurs are sometimes referred to as ‘swimming dinosaurs’, and the name means fish-lizard, although the creature has been officially classified as a reptile. They became extinct around 90 million years ago. View this post on Instagram #ichthyosaur #ammonite #paleoart #art #animals #nature #ocean #blue #illustration #sciart #dinosaurs A post shared by Julio Lacerda (@lacerda.julio) on Jun 25, 2019 at 2:57pm PDT Image: Instagram/archaeonewsnet Related Posts Extinct & Endangered: world’s rarest insects captured in microscopic detail 16 March 2023 A collaboration between photographer, Levon Biss, and the American Museum of Natural History featured photos... read more Dutch tech company develops AI-powered anti-poaching camera 2 March 2023 EWT successfully challenges classification of wild animals as livestock 23 February 2023 Several previously classified animals as “landrace” breeds and managed as livestock will soon have their... read more PREV ARTICLE NEXT ARTICLE
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