Representative Image (Canva)
According to a study published in the journal Gondwana Research, supported by findings from the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation (ANSTO), neutron and synchrotron scans of a 100-million-year-old ichthyosaur fossil from Queensland have uncovered the marine reptile’s final meal, and clues to its violent end. Researchers found the remains of fish, cephalopods and part of a pterosaur preserved inside its stomach, while crushing bite marks suggest it was probably scavenged or attacked by the giant marine predator Kronosaurus queenslandicus. The fossil offers a rare glimpse into the complex food web of Australia’s ancient inland sea.A remarkably preserved fossil from northwestern Queensland has allowed scientists to reconstruct one of the most dramatic prehistoric stories ever captured in stone. By combining advanced neutron imaging with high-resolution synchrotron X-ray scans, researchers were able to examine the fossil without damaging it, revealing both what the ancient predator had eaten and what likely happened to it shortly afterwards.The fossil belongs to a large ichthyosaur, a dolphin-shaped marine reptile that lived during the Early Cretaceous period around 100 million years ago. Measuring between six and seven metres in length, the animal swam through the vast Eromanga Sea, which once covered much of inland Australia and supported a rich diversity of marine life.
Scans uncover the ichthyosaur’s last meal
The specimen, nicknamed “Bag of Bones” or “B.O.B.”, was discovered in 2019 by fossil hunters at a public fossicking site near Richmond, Queensland. During its preparation, scientists noticed several rock nodules preserved behind the skull. Rather than opening them mechanically, they turned to neutron tomography and synchrotron computed tomography to investigate their contents.The scans revealed an extraordinary collection of remains inside the animal’s stomach. Researchers identified bones belonging to fish and cephalopods, marine animals related to today’s squid and cuttlefish. Even more remarkably, they also found fragments of a pterosaur jaw.The discovery marks the first direct fossil evidence anywhere in the world of an ichthyosaur consuming a pterosaur. Scientists suggest the ichthyosaur most likely seized the pterosaur while it was floating or skimming the water’s surface, where pterosaurs often searched for fish, instead of hunting it in mid-air.The exceptionally preserved stomach contents provide a rare snapshot of the ichthyosaur’s feeding behaviour and show that its diet was more varied than previously documented.
