Ichthyotitan severnensis identified as potentially massive new marine reptile

Paleontologists have identified a new species of ichthyosaur, named Ichthyotitan severnensis, which may be the largest marine reptile ever formally described. Based on bone fragments discovered in the Westbury Mudstone Formation in Somerset, UK, researchers believe the creature could have reached lengths of at least 25 meters.

The study, published in PLOS ONE by researchers from the University of Bristol and the University of Manchester, notes that while the size estimate is based on limited skeletal remains, the dimensions of the recovered jaws suggest a massive predator. These giant ichthyosaurs are believed to have gone extinct during the Triassic-Jurassic extinction approximately 200 million years ago.