Dinosaur species roamed the planet, reigning over other animals for over 150 million years. Long necks, showstopping hunting skills, and unlikely parental instincts proliferated throughout the Mesozoic Era. While humans have discovered a lot about the life of these creatures, no swimming species have been found up to now. Meet Natovenator polydontus, the world’s first dino that could swim. The discovery was recently made in Mongolia.
A Swimming Dinosaur
The newly discovered species was recently described in Communications Biology. The dinosaur was not a saurian giant. In fact, it was characterized as about a foot-long creature that lived in prehistoric Mongolia. It lived some 71 million years ago. Stunningly, scientists believe that it may have dived like a duck.
Paleontologists have already named some of the species’ cousins, one of whom is the sharp-toothed Velociraptor. The Velociraptor is known to have been a prolific hunter that was also very smart. The newly discovered dinosaur, however, didn’t look much like its cousin. The creature had long jaws full of tiny teeth. The name of the creature, Natovenator polydontus, means “the many-toothed swimming hunter.”
Further Paleontological Discoveries on the Species
Paleontologists still have a lot of work in order to determine how the creature lived and hunted. Paleontologist Federico Angolin, who’s a member of the Argentine Natural Science Museum, took part in the study. Recently, he commented that there are some indicators that show the dinosaur was probably aquatic.
Observing the animal’s teeth, scientists have determined that it probably was adept at snatching small and slippery prey from the water. Furthermore, the animal’s preserved ribs are oriented in a swept-back fashion. That is largely similar to penguins and auks. While no conclusion has been reached yet, many of the experts involved in the study believe the ribs’ position probably allowed it to swim efficiently in lakes and streams.