Discovered in Namibia:

Swamp creature was biggest predator of the dinos

(Bild: C. Marsicano)

Researchers have discovered an unusual prehistoric predator in what is now Namibia. The fanged head alone measured more than half a meter, and the entire animal was around two meters long, according to the scientists.

Around 300 million years ago, it was probably lying in wait at the bottom of swamps and lakes, opening its wide, flat mouth to suck in creatures swimming by and then holding them with a powerful bite.

The creature, which resembled a giant salamander, was given the scientific name Gaiasia jennyae. Remains of the species were found in the Gai-As Formation in north-western Namibia, as the team led by Jason Pardo from the Field Museum in Chicago reports in the journal Nature.

Artist's illustration: This is what the prehistoric predator might have looked like.

(Bild: Gabriel Lio)

The creature, which belongs to the tetrapods, lived around 280 million years ago in the Permian period - long before the first dinosaurs emerged. It was a particularly archaic species of that time - related species had already become extinct around 40 million years earlier.

Was probably the most important predator in the ecosystem
For being such a remnant of earlier times, the extraordinary creature fared quite well - it appears to have been the most important predator in the ecosystem of this area. Other archaic animals 300 million years ago were small and rare, explained Pardo.