Spinosaurus was the lead antagonist dinosaur in Jurassic Park III, and a new study has suggested that this beast was actually a river monster. Researchers made this conclusion after analyzing fossilized remains of this ancient creature discovered from an ancient riverbed in Morocco.
Spinosaurus: The Ultimate River Monsters
Researchers at the University of Portsmouth identified these fossils as the teeth of the Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, the villain dinosaur that scared audiences in Jurassic Park III. Until now, experts believed that dinosaurs were creatures that have lived only in the land. But the new finding breaks this belief, and it adds up to the fact that spinosaurus had actually lived in rivers.
Interestingly, researchers discovered more than 1,200 teeth of spinosaurus in the riverbed, and it clearly indicates that these creatures were living in the waters in a huge number.
"The huge number of teeth we collected in the prehistoric river bed reveals that Spinosaurus was there in huge numbers, accounting for 45 percent of the total dental remains. We know of no other location where such a mass of dinosaur teeth have been found in bone-bearing rock," said David Martell, a professor of paleobiology at the University of Portsmouth in a recent statement.
Spinosaurus Lived and Died in Rivers
Detailing the finding Martell also revealed that spinosaurus had lived and died in the rivers. According to Martell, only an aquatic animal's teeth can be found in much abundance in the riverbed, when compared to those dinosaurs who visit rivers only for drinking water.
"From this research, we are able to confirm this location as the place where this gigantic dinosaur not only lived but also died. The results are fully consistent with the idea of a truly water-dwelling, 'river monster," added Martell.
Spinosaurus Capable of Full Fledged Aquatic Movements
A few months back, another research headed by Nizar Ibrahim, a National Geographic explorer, had found that Spinosaurus had a tail that was much longer than a matured Tyrannosaurus Rex (T-Rex), the most deadly dinosaur ever roamed on Earth.
According to Nizar Ibrahim, the long tail of spinosaurus might have helped them to perform fully-fledged aquatic movements. The study report also suggested that these creatures had hunted underwater just like crocodiles.
As the new study report from the University of Portsmouth researchers has now surfaced, it has become pretty clear that spinosaurus dinosaurs were not land-dwelling killers, but they used to hunt in the waters and were actually the predators in rivers.
