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Intact Pliosaur Skull Discovered on UK's Jurassic Coast

The six-and-a-half feet long skull, one of the most complete ever found, hints at the size of the prehistoric sea monster and is expected to be featured in a BBC documentary.

  • Fossil hunters have discovered one of the most intact pliosaur skulls ever found on a beach in Dorset, United Kingdom, which is six-and-a-half feet long.
  • The skull was discovered by fossil enthusiast Phil Jacobs and was excavated from a cliff face after a three-week painstaking process.
  • The discovery is considered unique due to its completeness, with every bone present and the lower jaw and upper skull meshed together as they would be in life.
  • The pliosaur, a gigantic marine reptile that lived during the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods, was a fierce predator with a large head, four turtle-like flippers and a row of 130 massive, sharp teeth.
  • The discovery will be featured in a BBC documentary, 'Attenborough and the Jurassic Sea Monster' with David Attenborough, and is expected to be displayed in the Etches Collection Museum of Jurassic Marine Life next year.
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