Long-necked marine reptiles rotate the necks of their enemies

One of the ancient victims was Tanystropheus vulgaris, one of the most unusual examples of a long-necked marine reptile from the time of the dinosaurs. This marine reptile had a neck three times longer than its body and tail combined.

Biting the neck in one bite

The researchers examined the 240-million-year-old head and neck fossils of two species of Tanystropheus, both of which had obvious bite marks in the neck area.

One is about 1.5 meters long, while the other may be up to six meters long.

After studying the way the bones were broken and the short distance between the obvious bite marks, the researchers were able to determine the fate of the long-necked reptile.

“It’s tangible evidence that extinct marine reptiles with long necks had their throats torn open by predators. In both specimens examined, the neck was severed completely in one fell swoop,” explains Professor Stefan Spykman, a paleontologist at the State Museum of Natural History. in Stuttgart and co-author of the study.

Researchers identify suspected perpetrators

The researchers were also able to uncover potential culprits by comparing fossil tooth marks to the jaws of several predators that lived at the same time as Tanystropheus.

Thanks to its small size, all marine predators in the world were able to bite the neck of this small species of Tanystropheus.

But only the enormous marine reptile was able to separate the head from the six-meter body of Tanystrophus.

According to the researchers, the likely culprit is a large nothosaurus, which itself swam 5-7 meters long in ancient seas.

Although the long neck made the animals an easy target for the sharp teeth of predators, the researchers behind the study note that it was clearly a very successful evolutionary strategy.

evolutionary trade-off

The extremely long necks likely helped ancient marine reptiles catch fish and other animals, as their bodies were almost invisible on the sea floor.

The course of evolution also shows that several different groups of marine reptiles independently evolved very long necks over the course of 175 million years all over the world.

“Evolution is a game of trade-offs. After all, the advantage of having a long neck seems to have outweighed the risk of being attacked by a predator,” notes Professor Stefan Spykmann.