Thanks to a very patient British fossil hunter, the business end of a Pliosaur, including much of the skull and jaw, has been collected from the southern shores of England. What’s the big deal? Pliosaurs were genuine sea monsters, and the specimen Kevin Sheehan discovered is the largest Pliosaur ever found.

These gargantuan marine reptiles flourished during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, disappearing during the cataclysmic event that swept away the reptilian mega-fauna about 65 million years ago. They were related to the elegantly-shaped Plesiosaurs, of which the Loch Ness monster was thought by its proponents to be an example. The Plesiosaur, with its long neck and relatively small head, probably ate fish. The Pliosaur ate Plesiosaurs, or practically anything else that looked appetizing.

Sheehan’s example is the largest sea-going reptile ever found. It eclipsed in size ‘Predator X,’ the former champ, which had been unearthed in Svalbard, a Norwegian arctic island. That fossil is also a Pliosaur.

Unlike the depictions of sea monsters produced in the 17th through 19th centuries, which were embellished with horns, spikes, tentacles or other appendages of questionable utility, the Pliosaur’s physiognomy was simple and deadly. Like the smaller Plesiosaur, it was endowed with a set of four ‘paddles’ that propelled it through the water, but there the resemblance ends. The Pliosaur had a short neck and a very large, elongated head, somewhat like a crocodile. Its huge, strong jaws were festooned with razor-sharp teeth, a single bite from which could kill or maim the smaller meat-eaters upon which it prayed.

The skull of Sheehan’s Pliosaur measures 7’8” in length. Paleontologists have estimated that the creature was about 65’ long and weighed 12 tons. Those dimensions would have placed it at the pinnacle of the food chain in the ancient oceans.

Richard Forrest, paleontologist and Plesiosaur expert, said that compared to the Pliosaur, T. Rex was “a kitten.” Something like a T. Rex would have been breakfast for this beast he said. This Pliosaur would have taken a human in one gulp, and could have bitten a car in half. In an era when bigger was better, the Pliosaurs were kings of the sea.

A Canadian paleontologist Hans Larsson, claims he has found away, to bring back the Dinosaurs. By manipulating chicken embryo’s. Now this idea is still in its research stages, and could take years to create an actual dinosaur. To me though this doesn’t settle.

Billions of years ago dinosaurs ruled the earth. They were the top of the food chain, nothing was higher then them.  Many of us seen Jurassic Park, we have a pretty good idea why man should not play god with such beasts.
It is very upsetting that, this type of research is even being thought of.  When I think of man recreating dinosaurs I smell trouble much like Jurassic Park. 

If they prove this research  they will soon be hatching many real life Dinosaurs of many species. This means trouble for us as most dinosaurs were Carnivores(Meat eaters).  If then once they have, one of each and start breeding them, Humans will no longer be the top of the food chain.  We the humans will become the pursued and not the hunter,  should this happen? My grandfather always said that man would be human kinds downfall, but like this?

The irony of this is far from mistake. Dinosaurs are known to be the first living creatures to roam this vast earth, destroyed by earth twice, finally being wiped out. Humans took their place and thrived for many years with education and science which leads them to the redevelopment of Dinosaur life. In turn Humans then breed Dinosaurs, who began to reproduce on a rapid scale. Dinosaurs grow bigger and bigger in mass and volume, until we turn and find that the dinosaurs out number the humans 10-1.

Dinosaurs then take over the landscapes, so that is not safe for humans to roam around outside. Next they start wiping out humans by feeding on them until, Dinosaurs are all that is left. Earth comes in with dinosaurs, earth goes out with Dinosaurs it is a scary thought.

I hope these people remember that Jurassic Park should be kept a movie, that this very thing of hatching a dinosaur from a chicken embryo came from that movie, and in no shape or form should we humans, tempt fate and mimic the movie, or we could find ourselves in serious trouble.

Beginning with Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species back in 1859, man began to deviate from the traditional concept that he came into being courtesy of a creator, a supernatural being that ruled over all things. Darwin advocated that man evolved through the years from lower animals until he became as we know him now: Homo sapiens; and the fossil records seems to bear this assertion out. Fossils indicate that humans have evolved over a period of more than 8 million years but records of human life before our time as we know it date back only until about 10,000 years ago. The fossils that have been found do not provide incontrovertible evidence as there are missing fossils or links and these gaps in the fossil record weaken the evolution theory as evolutionists cannot fully promote it as a fact. Man is not satisfied with the answers as they are and has strived for further knowledge about his origin. And here comes Ida.

Ida is the latest human evolutionary fossil to be announced to the world. Its discoverers are touting it as one of the missing links in the fossil record of man’s evolution from lower animals. This 47-million-year-old fossil was found in 1983 in Darmstadt, Germany at a location called the Messel Pit which scientists believe used to be a volcanic lake in prehistoric times. The scientists who have studied it say it is a remarkably preserved fossil with even the food the animal ate just before dying still visible. Ida is the fossil of a lemur-like animal which its finders believe comes from the period when the primate line that evolved into apes and humans separated from the line that formed less known species such as lemurs. It was held by a private collector until it was revealed to the public this week. It seems man is now one leap closer to finding out his true origin but skepticism still abounds especially from independent scientists who have not gotten a chance to study the specimen. A few questions that could be asked are:

After this fossil was bought from the private collector (who apparently was an amateur fossil hunter who did not realize its importance), why did it take two whole years before the discovery was made public?

In the two years it took to study Ida and especially just before the announcement was made why were no independent scientists allowed to verify the claims made? 

Now that it has been made public, why have no independent scientists been allowed to study the specimen?

Scientific claims like this are usually published in the appropriate media without any form of promotion or advertisements but this fossil discovery has been accompanied by a coordinated media event including a book release, film release on the study of the fossil, a website and other media deals to promote it such as an appearance on Good Morning America. Why has the discovery team chosen this route?

In all likelihood these questions will not be asked because of non-belief in the claims of the scientists that have made this apparently momentous discovery but because man as was stated at the beginning of this article is what he is because of his quest for knowledge to satisfy his curiosity.

The whole world is watching.

Tyrannosaurus Rex

This was one of the largest land carnivores of all time. They left the Earth 65 million years ago. Its size was approximately 43.3 feet long, 16.6 feet tall and weighed a whopping seven tons.

The Quagga

The Quagga was a half Zebra and half horse and left our planet in 1883. This is Africa’s most famous extinct animal. It was known for its stripes which were only in the front of its body.

Thylacine

The Thylacine or Tasmanian tiger only left our planet in 1936. It was known as the largest carnivorous marsupial of modern times. It was native to Australia and New Guinea but is now lost to us forever.

The Steller Sea Cow

The Steller Sea Cow was a defenseless animal and left out planet in 1768. Their habitat was in the Asiatic Coast and the Bering Sea. They grew to be 25.9 feet long and weighed up to three tons. It was bigger than the Manatee or Dugong that we know today. The Dugong is also on the endangered species list.

The Irish Deer

This was the largest deer that ever lived and left our planet about 7,700 years ago. It lived in Eurasia, from Ireland to east of Lake Baikal. It measured 7 feet tall and carried antlers that measured 12 feet from tip to tip which weighed up to ninety pounds.

The Caspian Tiger

The Caspian Tiger only left us in 1970. This tiger could be found in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, Turkey, Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Caucasus, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. It was our world’s third largest Tiger.

The Aurochs

The Aurochs is one of Europe’s most famous extinct animal. It left our planet in 1627. It was a very large type of cattle that evolved in India approximately two million years ago. Scientist has tried to breed these back into our world but what they bred was an incomplete copy of the original.

The Great Auk

The Great Auk was the largest of all the Auks but it left this planet in 1844. This flightless bird stood 30 to 34 inches high and weighed approximately five kg.

The Cave Lion

The Cave Lion was the largest Lion ever known to man. It left this planet two thousand years ago. It lived in the Balkans. It is thought that this Lion was 5 to 10 % bigger than any Lion on Earth today.

The Dodo

The Dodo has been extinct since the late 17th century. It was a flightless bird that lived on the island of Mauritius. It is related to the pigeons and doves. It measured three feet tall. This bird’s extinction was directly related to human activity.

Even though some of these creatures were beyond mankind’s control in becoming extinct , some of them were in man’s control. Things have changed over the years and more people are becoming aware just how fragile life can be.There is so much hope for the animals that live in our world today. There are many protective groups and Government services that help to protect the species we have. Although some of our species are still on the endangered list we can still look forward to a bright future for them with due care and attention.

Let’s take a look at the most recent finds and see if you have ever heard of them.

1. 1997 – Cautipteryx (CAW-DIP-TER-IKS)

   This creature was located in the wetlands of China and is about the size of a large turkey. 3 feet tall, this flightless feathered dinosaur had a diet of small fish. Feathers covered its small arms making them appear to be wings and their tail feathers fanned out much like a turkey.

2. 1994 – Giganotosaurus (JIG-A-NOT-OH-SAWR-US)

   This creature was found in Argentina and considered a giant southern lizard. 18 feet high and 49 feet long, its skull was the size of a bathtub and its brain the size and shape of a banana. Walking on two legs, in many ways, resembled T-Rex even though it lived some 30 million years later.

3. 1989 – Leaellynasauraa (LEE-ELL-LIN-AH-SAWR-AH)

   This creature was found in Australia and considered one of the smartest of all dinosaurs. It had a huge brain and large eyes and was only 8 feet long and 18 inches tall. A small lizard type, they were thought to travel in herds, eating moss, ferns and leaves with their tough horned beaks.

4. 1988 – Argentinosaurus (AHY-GEN-TEEN-OH-SAWR-US)

   This creature was located in Argentina was a long necked herbivore that ate flowers, fruit and seeds. 69 feet tall and 130 feet long, Argentinosaurus has been determined to be the biggest animal that ever lived on earth, until the next discovery comes along, that is, resembling the Brachiosaurus.

5. 1983 – Baryonyx (BAR-EE-ON-IKS)

   This creature has been found in two separate areas of the world, England and Spain. Its name meaning “heavy claw” the 31 foot long and 16 feet tall fish therapod is the first meat eating diosaur to be discovered in England and the first fish-eating dinosaur to be discovered anywhere.

6. 1981 – Scutellosaurus (SKU-TEL-OH-SAWR-US)

    was located in Arizona, North America and is a tiny armoured dinosaur, possibly related to the Lesothaurus. No bigger than a dog, 5 foot tall and weighing a mere 22 pounds, Scutelloraurus was a herbivore and spent most of its time grazing. Heavily protected with over 300 armour plates over its skin, predators thought twice about taking a bite out of this little fellow.

7. 1979 – Seismoraurus (SIZE-MOH-SAWR-US)

    has been found in New Mexico, U.S.A. The nickname for this 45 ton herbivore is `earthquake lizard’ because it surely shook the earth when walking. Peg-like teeth led scientists to believe that its diet consisted of leaves on trees and grazing on plants and looked a lot like Diplodocus.

8. 1977 – Maiasaura (MY-AH-SAWR-AH)

   This has been found in Montana, North America. A herding animal that had a flat head and a toothless beak, it is believed that this hadrorosaur was a loving mother, thus the name that maiasura means, “good mother lizard. 30 feet long and weighing in at 30 ton, Maiasaura is the Official State Fossil of Montana.

9. 1972 – Gallimimus (GALL-IH-MIME-US)

   Fossils have been found in Asia and the name stands for “chicken mimic’ or “rooster mimic”. Carnivorous, they preyed on small animals and used their beak to break open eggs of other dinosaurs. 13-20 feet long, Gallimimus had very weak jaws and used their mouths as shovels, an internal filter-feeder straining the food.

10. 1964 – Minmi (MIN-MEE)

    This was first located in Queensland, Australia. Somewhere between an ankylosaur and nodosaur, the Minmi is about the size of a year-old calf with bony plates called scutes. This small armoured herbivore feasted on leaves, fruit and stems.

Who knows if there will ever be an end to the history of our world’s past when dinosaurs ruled the world.