Ancient Arctic Fossil Revealed as Largest Known Plagiosaurid Predator
A fossil uncovered on Bear Island in the Arctic has been identified as a new, giant species of plagiosaurid amphibian, measuring about 2.7 m in length.
A British team documented a battered fossil on the summit of Bear Island in 1948 but could not transport it, leaving it exposed to harsh Arctic conditions. Decades later, a Norwegian field party rediscovered the remains in 1984, and after a week of excavation the specimen was taken to Stuttgart for study. Paleontologists, led by Rainer Schoch, identified the creature as a new species, Arctobatrachus urdensis, measuring roughly 2.7 m long and possessing a 70 cm wide, boomerang-shaped skull.
Its massive jaws and teeth suggest it hunted actively as a dominant predator. The analysis places it among the earliest plagiosaurids, offering insight into the transition from more mobile ancestors to the later flat-bodied forms. The discovery expands knowledge of Triassic marine ecosystems across the globe.
Why it matters
The find provides rare evidence of early predator evolution in ancient marine ecosystems.
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