MYSTERY SOLVED

Scientists Identify New Jurassic Creature After Unearthing Fossil

The fascinating specimen was named after the area it was discovered in.

Experts have unearthed a new species of Jurassic reptile on the west coast of Scotland. The fossil belonged to a previously unknown reptile that roamed the Earth about 167 million years ago and is believed to be an ancient ancestor of modern snakes and lizards. An international team of researchers, led by the American Museum of Natural History, made the discovery on the Isle of Skye. The fossil was given the Gaelic name Breugnathair elgolensis, or the “false snake of Elgol,” in reference to the area where it was uncovered. The striking specimen had snake-like jaws and teeth that curved backwards like a python, according to experts. Its body, meanwhile, was more similar to the proportion and limbs of a lizard. “This might be telling us that snake ancestors were very different to what we expected, or it could instead be evidence for evolution of predatory habits in a primitive, extinct group,” lead author Dr. Roger Benson said.