An international group of paleontologists from Tunisia, Germany, France and Poland discovered an unknown fossil species of worm-like lizard that turned out to be the largest representative of its group. Fossils were discovered in central Tunisia. The study was published in the journal Zoological magazine Linnean Society (ZJLS).
Worm-like lizards (Amphisbaenia) or amphisbaenia are similar in appearance to worms. The similarity enhances the ability of these animals to crawl both forward and backward. Most modern reptiles of this type live underground.
The discovered animal was named Terastiodontosaurus marcelosanchezi. According to scientists, the lizard had powerful jaws that allowed it to gnaw the shells of snails. The creature lived on Earth during the Eocene period, approximately 50 million years ago.
“Visually, the animal can be imagined as a “sandworm” from Frank Herbert’s science fiction novel “Dune” and its film adaptations. “Looking at the structure of the teeth and the unusually thick enamel, we can conclude that the animals had tremendous muscle strength in their jaws,” experts said.
The researchers noted that Terastiodontosaurus marcelosanchezi was probably too large to burrow and lived on the surface.
Paleontologists added that if the worm-like lizards reached snake size, the new species could be compared to Titanoboa, an extinct boa constrictor that reached 13 meters in length and weighed more than a tonne.
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Source: Gazeta
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