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Pre-historic crocodile snout found fossilised at Rutland Water

By Evie Payne 9th Sep 2022

Rutland Water Nature Reserve is at the Western end of the water
Rutland Water Nature Reserve is at the Western end of the water

A pre-historic fossilised crocodile snout has been found at Rutland Water, near to the location where the fondly known 'Sea Dragon' was uncovered last year. 

The fossilised crocodile snout was discovered in late August by experts who think that the remains date back to the Jurassic Period. Further tests are set to confirm this.

The fossil was discovered a short walk, or swim, from where the 180-million-year-old fossil, Britain's biggest ichthyosaur, was discovered in February 2021. The recovery of this 10 metre 'Sea Dragon' is the most complete fossil discovered in Britain.

The discovery of the crocodile snout is much smaller, but the team at Rutland Water Nature Reserve, the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust, said that this was 'a very exciting find'.

Joe Davis, the Reserve manager, said: "What we've established is that millions of years ago this area was very rich in wildlife and the discovery of the crocodile fossil indicates that it might have been a nesting area for them. 

"It's quite a thing to try to picture the scene 180 million years ago with all these amazing creatures.

"You can see from the snout where the teeth used to be and we think the whole creature was a couple of metres long and probably 12-and-a-half years old.

"So while it's not as large as the ichthyosaur it's still a very exciting find."

Find out more about the 'Sea Dragon' here. Alternatively, find out about the £40,000 grant secured by Rutland County Council upon the discovery of the 'Sea Dragon'.

     

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