“I was shocked when I saw skin cells that had been preserved for 183 million years,” explained Miguel Marx, a Ph.D. student at Lund University. This is based on the first thorough analysis of a plesiosaur fossil’s soft tissue and has given us unparalleled information about the anatomy of these past marine reptiles. The Early Jurassic-era fossil, unearthed in Holzmaden, Germany, was so perfectly preserved that it offered a glimpse of the plesiosaur’s skin structure, which is extremely rare.
The long-necked marine predator plesiosaur, found in every corner of the globe during the Mesozoic Era, dominated the seas. The flat, broad body and four flippers of such creatures propelled through the water in much the same manner that contemporary sea turtles do. The new research, which was reported in Current Biology, shows that the plesiosaur skin was less smooth than it was thought to be. Rather than being smooth, it had a distinctive set of smooth skin on the body but minute scales on the flippers, reminiscent of a chimera of green sea turtle and a leatherback turtle.
Having both smooth and scaly skin indicates functional adaptations. The smooth skin may have saved drag, reducing the energy used in the swim, and the scales helped to provide stiffness and friction to allow translation on the seafloor. This sideline of evolution is different from other sea reptiles, such as the ichthyosaurs, that developed smooth skin to accommodate streamlined locomotion. Marx says, “It changes our perspective on their evolutionary history and how they adapted to life in the ocean.”
Its pre-scientific history was as fascinating as its findings. It was discovered in 1940 but entombed when World War II erupted and remained undisturbed for decades before being analyzed in 2020. Minimally invasive preparation consisted of dissolving the minerals in thin sections of the fossil in order to detach the organic remains so scientists could see the microscopic texture of the skin. This book opened a window onto the past, providing us with something to compare with the present day and changing our perception of plesiosaur biology.
The implications of this find go far beyond the plesiosaur. It is an example of what well-preserved fossils can show us about the biology of extinct animals. As Marx demonstrated, “Our findings help us create more accurate life reconstructions of plesiosaurs, something that has been extremely difficult since they were first studied over 200 years ago.” By showing that they existed in the past, scientists can make us realize macroevolution and adaptation needed to stay alive in one environment.
Secondly, this research highlights the significance of soft tissue fossilization, an event that is uncommon and of major significance regarding information about past life. The fact that the skin and scales were fossilized in the plesiosaur fossil adds to the understanding of sea reptiles’ anatomy as well as offers a new path for the study of the evolutionary history of these legendary creatures. As aptly stated by Marx, “The well-preserved German fossil really highlights the potential for soft tissue in providing valuable insights into the biology of these long-extinct animals.”
This pioneering study, encompassing institutions like Uppsala University and the Urwelt-Museum Hauff, is a leap in quantum for paleontology. It sheds light on traditional myths and opens the world to the prospect of further investigation into the secrets of past oceanic life. The farther we go towards the rear of the Earth’s past, the more we disentangle the luxurious brocade of the planet’s past, giving us an introduction to the evolutionary wonders that once inhabited the planet.
