One of the greatest finds in the history of British palaeontology was a prehistoric sea dragon.
The largest and most complete fossil of its kind ever found in the UK was found by the team of scientists who excavated the site. During the draining of a lagoon island in February of 2021, it was discovered by Joe Davis of the Leicestershire and Rutland Wildlife Trust.
Mary Anning discovered the first sea dragons in the early 19th century and they were called icthyosaurs because of their large teeth and eyes.
The fossil was found during the draining of a lagoon island. The picture was taken by the Anglian Water/PA.
The largest skeleton ever found in the UK is the one found in the Rutland ichthyosaur. It is one of the greatest finds in British history.
Ichthyosaurs, which were marine reptiles, went extinct 90m years ago. They ranged in size from 1 to 25 metres in length and looked like dolphins.
The remains were dug out by a team of experts.
An artist's impression of a reptile. The photo was taken by Bob Nicholls/Anglian Water.
The first complete skeleton of an irrthyosaur was found during the construction of Rutland Water in the 1970s.
Mark Evans, who has been studying the fossils of the dinosaurs in the region for more than 20 years, said that even from the first glimpse of the partially exposed fossil, it was clear that it was the largest reptile discovered in the region.
After our exploratory dig, we realized that it was complete to the tip of the tail. It is a very significant discovery both nationally and internationally, but also very important to the people of Rutland and the surrounding area.
It is not often that you are responsible for lifting a very important but fragile fossil. I love a challenge, but it is a responsibility. It was a very complex operation to uncover, record, and collect this important specimen.
On Tuesday at 8pm, the excavation of the remains will be shown on Digging For Britain.
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