Credit: Chokchaloemwong et al
It’s like Jaws! Except with legs!
If there’s one thing we’ve all pretty much come to accept about the dinosaurs, it’s that they were pretty good at biting stuff. I mean, a T-Rex has to be good at biting, ’cause the only other thing it has going for it is its big feet. But you know what else is good at biting stuff? Sharks. And you know what would be really good at biting stuff? A shark-toothed dinosaur.
Last week, a set of bones theorized to belong to a previously undiscovered genus of dinosaurs was discovered in Thailand. The research team, a hybrid of researchers from Thailand’s Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University and Japan’s Fukui Prefectural University, have named this new specimen “Siamraptor suwati.” The Siamraptor is theorized to have been food chain contender about 115 million years ago, measuring in at around 8 meters long.
The Siamraptor is believed to belong to a group of dinosaur species known as the carcharodontosaurs. The carcharodontosaurs are known for having thin, blade-like teeth that excel at tearing stuff up, not unlike a shark.
Interestingly, samples of carcharodontosaurs have been discovered Africa and Europe. Now, thanks to this discovery in Thailand, we can add Southeast Asia to that list. These guys must’ve really gotten around.
