“Visually, chances are you’ll take into consideration the animal as a ‘sandworm’ from the ‘Dune’ science fiction novels and their movie adaptation.”
Researchers have described a model new species of worm lizard of the amphisbaenian genus that lived in the midst of the Eocene 56 to 33.9 million years prior to now) throughout the Chambi mountains of Tunisia. The worm lizard, Terastiodontosaurus marcelosanchezi is the most important worm lizard species throughout the Amphisbaenia group and has a skull dimension that exceeds 5 centimeters, consistent with a press launch put out by the Senckenberg Evaluation Institute and Pure Historic previous Museum detailing the invention.
“Our discovery from Tunisia, with an estimated skull dimension exceeding 5 centimeters, is the most important recognized worm lizard species,” Prof. Dr. Georgios L. Georgalis from the Institute of Systematics and Evolution of Animals on the Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, said throughout the press launch. “All proof signifies that the model new species is expounded to the modern-day checkerboard worm lizard.”
The present checkerboard worm lizard (Trogonophis wiegmanni) moreover feeds on snails. {Photograph}: Alberto Sanchez Vialas/Senckenberg Evaluation Institute and Pure Historic previous Museum
The researchers used micro-computed tomography to doc the distinctive anatomy of the worm lizard, along with a very huge tooth throughout the increased jaw, flat molars, and totally different distinctive choices that differentiate the species from others throughout the Amphisbaenia group.
“Visually, chances are you’ll take into consideration the animal as a ‘sandworm’ from the ‘Dune’ science fiction novels and their movie adaptation. Primarily based totally on the tooth building and the unusually thick enamel, we’ll deduce that the animals had large muscle energy of their jaws,” Georgalis said. “Everyone knows that as we converse’s checkerboard worm lizards desire to eat snails by breaking open their shells. We’ll now assume that this lineage specialised in feeding on snails over 56 million years prior to now and can crack them open effortlessly with their extremely efficient jaws. This feeding method is subsequently terribly fixed – it has defied all environmental changes and accompanies the lineage to at the moment.”
Your entire evaluation paper, “The world’s largest worm lizard: a model new large trogonophid (Squamata: Amphisbaenia) with extreme dental permutations from the Eocene of Chambi, Tunisia” could also be study on the Zoological Journal website online.