Scientists have discovered the 130-million-year-old fossil of a reptile in the center of Colombia, the National University said.
University investigators were hired by state-controlled oil company Ecopetrol to search for fossils after having been ordered to do so in order to get a permit to run pipelines through the area.
According to the university, the found plesiosaur “belongs to a group of sea reptiles that are considered the great predators of their time.”
According to investigator Maria Euridice Paramo, the found reptile is smaller than others and investigators found evidence indicating that the animal was still in his childhood when it died.
The fossil will make part of the National University’s fossil collection, a large number of which was found in Villa de Leyva, a town popular among scientists because of its large amount of fossils.
Villa de Leyva, Boyaca
Sources
- Hallan fósil de más de 130 millones de años (National University)
- Plesiosauria (Wikipedia)