1 00:00:20,800 --> 00:00:24,199 The remains of a dragon have just been discovered 2 00:00:24,200 --> 00:00:27,919 in the cliffs of Dorset on the south-east coast of England... 3 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:32,680 one that has been hidden in the rocks for 200 million years. 4 00:00:34,880 --> 00:00:39,839 It was an enormous marine reptile that ruled the seas 5 00:00:39,840 --> 00:00:44,400 at the same time as the dinosaurs ruled the land. 6 00:00:47,920 --> 00:00:51,560 Scientifically, it's called an ichthyosaur. 7 00:00:53,040 --> 00:00:54,759 Since Jurassic times, 8 00:00:54,760 --> 00:00:58,440 its fossilized bones have been locked away in these cliffs. 9 00:01:00,040 --> 00:01:04,039 But now we have a chance to reveal it and its story. 10 00:01:04,040 --> 00:01:06,160 Lots and lots of bone in there. 11 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:14,359 The bones are so well preserved, it may be able to give us 12 00:01:14,360 --> 00:01:17,920 new insights into the lives of these remarkable creatures. 13 00:01:19,680 --> 00:01:21,719 Together with a team of scientists, 14 00:01:21,720 --> 00:01:26,200 we will reconstruct the skeleton and compare it to animals alive today. 15 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:33,799 We'll try to understand how it looked. 16 00:01:33,800 --> 00:01:36,240 We have actual preservation of the skin of our ichthyosaur. 17 00:01:36,241 --> 00:01:37,600 How extraordinary! 18 00:01:38,600 --> 00:01:41,360 And how it survived in the open ocean. 19 00:01:43,520 --> 00:01:47,320 Could this be a completely new species of ichthyosaur? 20 00:01:49,320 --> 00:01:51,399 Our search for evidence will lead us 21 00:01:51,400 --> 00:01:55,600 into an intriguing forensic investigation into how it died. 22 00:01:57,960 --> 00:02:01,400 I think you're looking at a 200 million year old murder mystery. 23 00:02:03,040 --> 00:02:07,399 Solving that mystery will throw light on the extraordinary world 24 00:02:07,400 --> 00:02:12,760 in the Jurassic seas that once existed just off our shores. 25 00:02:22,800 --> 00:02:25,679 The story of this extraordinary dragon 26 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:28,879 starts here in Dorset on the south coast of England, 27 00:02:28,880 --> 00:02:32,599 one of the most important geological sites in the world... 28 00:02:32,600 --> 00:02:34,560 the Jurassic Coast. 29 00:02:39,640 --> 00:02:44,480 It stretches for almost 100 miles from Devon to Dorset. 30 00:02:47,720 --> 00:02:49,839 And it was here that the early geologists 31 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:53,319 first collected evidence that once the world was ruled 32 00:02:53,320 --> 00:02:58,040 by monstrous reptiles, quite unlike anything alive on Earth today. 33 00:03:05,200 --> 00:03:08,599 Evidence of creatures that existed all that time ago 34 00:03:08,600 --> 00:03:11,040 can still be found on these beaches. 35 00:03:13,560 --> 00:03:17,919 Fossil collectors have been coming here for literally centuries 36 00:03:17,920 --> 00:03:22,279 and these rapidly eroding cliffs are providing them 37 00:03:22,280 --> 00:03:26,280 with a continuous supply of exciting things to find. 38 00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:32,319 I started looking for fossils when I was a boy 39 00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:35,399 and I've never lost the feeling of excitement 40 00:03:35,400 --> 00:03:38,240 and anticipation of what one might discover. 41 00:03:43,200 --> 00:03:47,879 The commonest fossils here are coiled shells called ammonites 42 00:03:47,880 --> 00:03:50,279 and you can find them all over the place. 43 00:03:50,280 --> 00:03:53,839 There's one here on this boulder. 44 00:03:53,840 --> 00:03:56,079 You can see the whorls there, 45 00:03:56,080 --> 00:03:58,639 but it's mostly been worn away by the sea. 46 00:03:58,640 --> 00:04:02,519 But sometimes if you're lucky, you can find nodules like this 47 00:04:02,520 --> 00:04:03,999 and if you look at them, 48 00:04:04,000 --> 00:04:10,759 you can see there's the edge there of an ammonite and if I hit it... 49 00:04:10,760 --> 00:04:14,880 If I put on protective glasses and I hit it, it should... 50 00:04:17,440 --> 00:04:19,079 HE LAUGHS 51 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:21,239 How about that? 52 00:04:21,240 --> 00:04:23,280 Wow! 53 00:04:24,280 --> 00:04:25,640 What a find! 54 00:04:28,360 --> 00:04:31,759 Ammonites, in fact, are quite common on this beach, 55 00:04:31,760 --> 00:04:35,439 but every now and again, something truly rare 56 00:04:35,440 --> 00:04:41,439 and spectacular is found here and quite often by this man... 57 00:04:41,440 --> 00:04:44,720 one of the most skilled fossil hunters I know. 58 00:04:45,920 --> 00:04:50,639 Chris Moore has been collecting fossils here for more than 30 years. 59 00:04:50,640 --> 00:04:53,839 Recently, he came across a boulder 60 00:04:53,840 --> 00:04:57,080 which he thought might contain something unusual. 61 00:04:58,560 --> 00:04:59,879 Back in his workshop, 62 00:04:59,880 --> 00:05:03,559 he exposed a mosaic of small, beautifully preserved bones 63 00:05:03,560 --> 00:05:07,199 which he knew straight away were the front fins, 64 00:05:07,200 --> 00:05:09,560 the paddles, of an ichthyosaur. 65 00:05:11,400 --> 00:05:14,960 But they were unlike any he had ever seen before. 66 00:05:24,320 --> 00:05:26,040 I still collect fossils. 67 00:05:28,240 --> 00:05:31,119 I even have the remains of an ichthyosaur... 68 00:05:31,120 --> 00:05:34,800 a small one of a kind that's relatively common. 69 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:42,319 This was collected by Chris about ten years ago in Dorset. 70 00:05:42,320 --> 00:05:44,599 I never found anything as beautiful as this. 71 00:05:44,600 --> 00:05:48,360 It's got jaws and it's got teeth and it's got paddles. 72 00:05:49,560 --> 00:05:53,079 And Dorset was the very first place 73 00:05:53,080 --> 00:05:57,599 where they found a really complete skeleton of one of these creatures. 74 00:05:57,600 --> 00:06:00,439 This is a picture of it, 75 00:06:00,440 --> 00:06:05,919 published for the very first time in 1814. 76 00:06:05,920 --> 00:06:10,559 People thought it was some kind of monster, but what was it? 77 00:06:10,560 --> 00:06:15,999 They thought it was a kind of cross between a reptile and a fish 78 00:06:16,000 --> 00:06:22,680 so they called it an ichthyosaur - A fish lizard or sea dragon. 79 00:06:25,040 --> 00:06:27,879 Since that time, many fossil fragments of ichthyosaurs 80 00:06:27,880 --> 00:06:30,560 have been discovered on the Jurassic Coast. 81 00:06:32,400 --> 00:06:35,120 But complete skeletons are very rare. 82 00:06:37,600 --> 00:06:40,159 The particular one that Chris has just found 83 00:06:40,160 --> 00:06:44,840 is significantly different from any that's ever been found here before. 84 00:06:49,120 --> 00:06:52,959 It's not easy to get to the beach where it was discovered. 85 00:06:52,960 --> 00:06:56,520 At high tide, the only way to do so is by boat. 86 00:07:00,640 --> 00:07:05,159 I asked Chris where the rest of the skeleton might still lie. 87 00:07:05,160 --> 00:07:07,679 It's in the very top limestone bed 88 00:07:07,680 --> 00:07:10,119 where the cliffs are at the lowest point. 89 00:07:10,120 --> 00:07:13,639 It's got about two metres on top of clay 90 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:15,320 and we'll have to clear this material off 91 00:07:15,321 --> 00:07:17,079 till we get to the limestone bed. 92 00:07:17,080 --> 00:07:18,479 It' a lot of hard work. 93 00:07:18,480 --> 00:07:21,679 It's a lot of digging, yeah, and also we have to do it, really, 94 00:07:21,680 --> 00:07:25,319 before the winter turns again and the weather gets bad 95 00:07:25,320 --> 00:07:27,839 because there's a chance that the next landslip 96 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:30,560 will just push it off onto the beach and destroy it. 97 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:37,520 In Jurassic times, sea covered all this area. 98 00:07:39,320 --> 00:07:42,119 On its floor, sediments washed down from the land 99 00:07:42,120 --> 00:07:45,800 turned into layers of shales and limestone. 100 00:07:47,520 --> 00:07:50,319 The land rose, the sea retreated 101 00:07:50,320 --> 00:07:52,119 and now in the rocks, 102 00:07:52,120 --> 00:07:54,119 you can find the remains of the creatures 103 00:07:54,120 --> 00:07:57,160 that once lived in those ancient waters. 104 00:08:01,200 --> 00:08:04,759 As well as the remains of ammonites, there are the bones of fish, 105 00:08:04,760 --> 00:08:06,280 such as sharks. 106 00:08:08,840 --> 00:08:14,520 But the top predators at this time were reptiles - ichthyosaurs. 107 00:08:17,520 --> 00:08:23,400 They dominated the seas for more than 150 million years. 108 00:08:33,760 --> 00:08:36,479 After getting permission to dig, 109 00:08:36,480 --> 00:08:40,319 the team clamber down the cliff to the particular layer 110 00:08:40,320 --> 00:08:43,759 where the rest of our ichthyosaur skeleton should be lying. 111 00:08:43,760 --> 00:08:45,398 I'm going to need at least another metre, 112 00:08:45,399 --> 00:08:46,960 cos I need to drop down to the next bit. 113 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:51,039 It's dangerous work. 114 00:08:51,040 --> 00:08:53,880 These cliffs occasionally collapse without warning. 115 00:09:02,200 --> 00:09:05,839 To make sure that they don't damage any of the fossils, 116 00:09:05,840 --> 00:09:08,800 the team do all the digging by hand. 117 00:09:10,640 --> 00:09:12,600 There's just loads of roots. 118 00:09:13,760 --> 00:09:17,639 Tonnes of clay have to be removed before they even reach 119 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:19,799 the layer of limestone where they hope 120 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:21,879 the rest of the bones still lie. 121 00:09:21,880 --> 00:09:23,400 Wayhey! 122 00:09:26,800 --> 00:09:28,599 It was on this very coast 123 00:09:28,600 --> 00:09:32,720 that the first complete skeleton of an ichthyosaur was discovered. 124 00:09:34,520 --> 00:09:36,439 It was found in the 19th century 125 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:39,920 by a remarkable woman called Mary Anning. 126 00:09:41,480 --> 00:09:44,839 Mary lived in the little town of Lyme Regis, 127 00:09:44,840 --> 00:09:49,320 the daughter of a cabinet maker who collected fossils as a hobby. 128 00:09:51,760 --> 00:09:54,479 When Mary was only 11, her father died 129 00:09:54,480 --> 00:09:58,439 so she and her brother started selling fossils to visitors 130 00:09:58,440 --> 00:10:00,720 to support their widowed mother. 131 00:10:08,520 --> 00:10:14,520 Lyme Regis Museum now devotes a whole gallery to her and her finds. 132 00:10:15,880 --> 00:10:22,919 Mary had an extraordinary talent for finding fossils and in 1811, 133 00:10:22,920 --> 00:10:26,599 she discovered this gigantic creature, 134 00:10:26,600 --> 00:10:29,320 the like of which no-one had ever seen before. 135 00:10:30,320 --> 00:10:33,399 Dinosaurs had not yet been discovered. 136 00:10:33,400 --> 00:10:36,679 No-one had any idea that way back in pre-history, 137 00:10:36,680 --> 00:10:39,839 there were such gigantic creatures, 138 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:42,240 so this caused a sensation. 139 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:48,479 It was then that the popular name "sea dragon" 140 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:50,920 was given to these prehistoric monsters. 141 00:10:52,200 --> 00:10:55,559 Scientists speculated on how they lived 142 00:10:55,560 --> 00:10:59,919 and artists tried to imagine what they must have looked like 143 00:10:59,920 --> 00:11:02,440 and how they behaved. 144 00:11:09,960 --> 00:11:14,800 Back at the cliff face, Chris and his team are hard at it. 145 00:11:15,840 --> 00:11:19,040 But they haven't found any more bones. 146 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:31,199 This is a massive piece. Tombstone! 147 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:32,719 Right, ready? 148 00:11:32,720 --> 00:11:36,279 Chris is convinced that the skeleton to which the paddles belonged 149 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:39,799 must be somewhere here and they check every rock. 150 00:11:39,800 --> 00:11:42,120 Beautiful shale! 151 00:11:49,160 --> 00:11:53,759 - Lovely! - Anything interesting? - Moment of truth... 152 00:11:53,760 --> 00:11:56,439 Nothing. 153 00:11:56,440 --> 00:11:58,680 - Just push it off. - Yeah. 154 00:12:02,680 --> 00:12:05,159 Is there anything showing? 155 00:12:05,160 --> 00:12:06,999 Nothing else here. 156 00:12:07,000 --> 00:12:09,520 Oh, gosh, that's hard work. 157 00:12:14,280 --> 00:12:16,319 I hope there's something here. 158 00:12:16,320 --> 00:12:18,040 I almost don't want to look! 159 00:12:20,040 --> 00:12:21,679 - Ah! - What have you found? 160 00:12:21,680 --> 00:12:25,919 - There's a bone. - Loads of bone going all the way... There's bone there. 161 00:12:25,920 --> 00:12:28,680 - There's something here! - HE LAUGHS 162 00:12:29,840 --> 00:12:34,599 At long last, the team's efforts are rewarded. 163 00:12:34,600 --> 00:12:37,319 We've got some bones here! 164 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:40,559 - There's loads of bones. - Fantastic! 165 00:12:40,560 --> 00:12:42,239 Ah! What's this? 166 00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:44,279 Is that a vertebrae? 167 00:12:44,280 --> 00:12:47,039 But the bones are not in the position 168 00:12:47,040 --> 00:12:49,359 the team had expected to find them. 169 00:12:49,360 --> 00:12:52,639 Instead of lying across the face of the cliff, 170 00:12:52,640 --> 00:12:55,799 the skeleton seems to be bending back into it. 171 00:12:55,800 --> 00:12:58,759 We're going to have to go down through there. 172 00:12:58,760 --> 00:13:01,440 It means much more work. 173 00:13:02,520 --> 00:13:06,680 And to make matters worse, a storm is brewing. 174 00:13:07,720 --> 00:13:09,359 The rain is just starting, 175 00:13:09,360 --> 00:13:11,720 but I think we've got to make a bit of a run for it. 176 00:13:21,280 --> 00:13:25,879 We won't be working any more in this for the moment. It's torrential. 177 00:13:25,880 --> 00:13:28,039 Beautiful rainbow, though. 178 00:13:28,040 --> 00:13:32,040 A rainbow will be little comfort if the storm persists. 179 00:13:33,200 --> 00:13:36,519 Rough seas and heavy downpours can cause landslips, 180 00:13:36,520 --> 00:13:40,240 which could easily destroy any chance of retrieving the bones. 181 00:13:44,480 --> 00:13:48,599 It was after just such a storm that Chris found the front limbs, 182 00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,160 the paddles of our sea dragon. 183 00:13:53,480 --> 00:13:56,519 They convinced him that the fossil was something special. 184 00:13:56,520 --> 00:13:59,839 VOICEOVER: You can see why when you compare them 185 00:13:59,840 --> 00:14:01,998 VOICEOVER: to the paddles of the kind of ichthyosaur 186 00:14:01,999 --> 00:14:03,640 VOICEOVER: that's usually found here. 187 00:14:03,641 --> 00:14:08,159 This is an adult and this is the paddle of this creature 188 00:14:08,160 --> 00:14:11,960 and if you compare it to this one... 189 00:14:16,480 --> 00:14:21,159 - Oh, it's huge. Oh, yeah. - I've never seen anything quite like it. 190 00:14:21,160 --> 00:14:24,559 There are half a dozen rows of digits there and how many there? 191 00:14:24,560 --> 00:14:27,359 I think there's at least nine or ten crossways 192 00:14:27,360 --> 00:14:30,679 and obviously, you know, many more in length. 193 00:14:30,680 --> 00:14:33,439 It's getting on for twice the number of digits. 194 00:14:33,440 --> 00:14:36,599 - And the whole shape of the fin is completely... - Quite different. 195 00:14:36,600 --> 00:14:38,359 And must be new, therefore? 196 00:14:38,360 --> 00:14:43,119 - I think so. I've never seen anything quite like it. - How exciting! 197 00:14:43,120 --> 00:14:45,239 VOICEOVER: It's extremely rare to find 198 00:14:45,240 --> 00:14:47,999 VOICEOVER: a new species of ichthyosaur these days. 199 00:14:48,000 --> 00:14:53,519 Only nine have been discovered here in the last 200 years. 200 00:14:53,520 --> 00:14:56,799 But can these strange paddles tell us something 201 00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:59,440 about how this odd ichthyosaur lived? 202 00:15:01,320 --> 00:15:05,400 To try and find out, we are going to construct a three-dimensional model. 203 00:15:06,800 --> 00:15:11,679 To do that, we first need to have the paddles scanned. 204 00:15:11,680 --> 00:15:15,680 So, Chris is taking them to Southampton University. 205 00:15:19,400 --> 00:15:22,719 Here, the engineering department has one of the largest 206 00:15:22,720 --> 00:15:25,600 high resolution scanners in the country. 207 00:15:29,080 --> 00:15:30,960 It's not every day someone walks in 208 00:15:30,961 --> 00:15:34,360 with a 200-million-year-old sea reptile. 209 00:15:39,880 --> 00:15:44,319 The machine can scan objects of all different shapes and sizes 210 00:15:44,320 --> 00:15:48,480 from ancient coins to the components of spacecraft. 211 00:15:53,600 --> 00:15:57,719 To create a picture, the scanner takes thousands of X-ray images 212 00:15:57,720 --> 00:16:01,400 in cross sections through the fossil as it rotates. 213 00:16:07,080 --> 00:16:11,080 It's not long before the first images appear. 214 00:16:12,640 --> 00:16:15,600 That's amazing. It looks really clear. 215 00:16:16,720 --> 00:16:20,079 You can even see the bones laying underneath the paddle. 216 00:16:20,080 --> 00:16:22,038 At the moment, we're just doing one section. 217 00:16:22,039 --> 00:16:24,200 We're going to do multiple scans down the specimen 218 00:16:24,201 --> 00:16:26,839 and build it all back together into a three-dimensional volume. 219 00:16:26,840 --> 00:16:31,560 The scans of the paddles are sent to Bristol University. 220 00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:36,919 Here, scientists can isolate the image of each bone within the rock 221 00:16:36,920 --> 00:16:41,520 and then assemble them to create a detailed three-dimensional model. 222 00:16:45,520 --> 00:16:48,439 The team is particularly excited by the shape 223 00:16:48,440 --> 00:16:52,160 and structure of these paddles and I've come to find out why. 224 00:16:55,720 --> 00:16:58,799 We've got a complete paddle here taken from the bones itself, 225 00:16:58,800 --> 00:17:01,119 fully reconstructed, rearticulated 226 00:17:01,120 --> 00:17:03,879 so this is as close as we can get to what it would have looked like. 227 00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:07,479 We can actually start using this paddle to try and tell us 228 00:17:07,480 --> 00:17:09,119 what species it might have been. 229 00:17:09,120 --> 00:17:11,159 Because of the size of the paddle 230 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:13,799 and the way that some of these bones articulate with each other, 231 00:17:13,800 --> 00:17:16,119 it's different to other ichthyosaurus 232 00:17:16,120 --> 00:17:18,239 and so this could be a new species. 233 00:17:18,240 --> 00:17:20,839 - That would be great. - It would be jolly exciting. 234 00:17:20,840 --> 00:17:25,319 VOICEOVER: We won't know for sure until we find the rest of the body, 235 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:27,399 but can the paddles tell us something 236 00:17:27,400 --> 00:17:30,199 about the way in which this creature swam? 237 00:17:30,200 --> 00:17:32,519 There are a lot of bones in this paddle, 238 00:17:32,520 --> 00:17:35,199 which would have been good for holding steady 239 00:17:35,200 --> 00:17:37,959 and also for allowing it to be manoeuvrable in the water. 240 00:17:37,960 --> 00:17:41,079 - There would have been cartilage round that, wouldn't there? - Yes. 241 00:17:41,080 --> 00:17:42,558 All of the gaps between the bones 242 00:17:42,559 --> 00:17:44,398 would have been filled in with cartilage 243 00:17:44,399 --> 00:17:46,360 and even further around the paddle itself, 244 00:17:46,361 --> 00:17:48,919 giving it a paddle-like shape, giving it a cross section 245 00:17:48,920 --> 00:17:50,399 a bit like an aerofoil 246 00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:52,840 so that it could cut straight through the water. 247 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:57,759 - Could they fold them in to the side? - Probably not. 248 00:17:57,760 --> 00:17:59,678 Looking at the muscles and where they attach, 249 00:17:59,679 --> 00:18:01,518 it suggests these are moving up and down, 250 00:18:01,519 --> 00:18:02,878 helping it to turn very quickly 251 00:18:02,879 --> 00:18:04,800 or keeping it on the straight and narrow 252 00:18:04,801 --> 00:18:07,440 when it wants to be a little more sedate. 253 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:14,799 The shape of the paddles and the way they moved 254 00:18:14,800 --> 00:18:20,120 seems very like the way an animal alive today uses its paddles. 255 00:18:21,200 --> 00:18:24,119 That animal usually lives in tropical waters 256 00:18:24,120 --> 00:18:26,120 like these in the Caribbean. 257 00:18:28,040 --> 00:18:29,679 The sea here is warm 258 00:18:29,680 --> 00:18:31,799 with temperatures much like they would have been 259 00:18:31,800 --> 00:18:33,920 in Jurassic times around Britain. 260 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:37,399 And the animal in question... 261 00:18:37,400 --> 00:18:40,280 is the dolphin. 262 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:48,920 Dolphins, of course, are mammals, not reptiles like ichthyosaurs. 263 00:18:49,960 --> 00:18:54,680 Nonetheless, the two groups have bodies shaped in very similar ways. 264 00:18:57,160 --> 00:18:59,719 The front fins or paddles of both 265 00:18:59,720 --> 00:19:01,678 would have helped to steady themselves 266 00:19:01,679 --> 00:19:03,640 as they turn and cut through the water. 267 00:19:05,840 --> 00:19:09,000 And both have similar dorsal fins. 268 00:19:11,000 --> 00:19:13,799 So, although they lived 200 million years apart, 269 00:19:13,800 --> 00:19:19,079 dolphins and ichthyosaurs share many physical characteristics 270 00:19:19,080 --> 00:19:23,279 and that's because they evolved in similar ways 271 00:19:23,280 --> 00:19:26,280 as a response to a similar environment. 272 00:19:35,680 --> 00:19:37,159 Like dolphins, 273 00:19:37,160 --> 00:19:41,279 ichthyosaurs evolved from ancestors that had once lived on land. 274 00:19:41,280 --> 00:19:44,359 As they became adapted to life in water, 275 00:19:44,360 --> 00:19:46,599 they lost the ability to walk, 276 00:19:46,600 --> 00:19:48,879 their bodies became more streamlined 277 00:19:48,880 --> 00:19:52,920 and their forelimbs turned into paddles to help them swim. 278 00:19:55,360 --> 00:19:59,840 But ichthyosaurs do differ from dolphins in two striking ways. 279 00:20:05,920 --> 00:20:09,559 Dolphins have tails that are flattened horizontally 280 00:20:09,560 --> 00:20:14,200 and they drive themselves forward by beating their tails up and down. 281 00:20:15,920 --> 00:20:19,479 But we know from their fossils that ichthyosaur tails 282 00:20:19,480 --> 00:20:22,079 were flattened vertically like those of sharks, 283 00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:24,919 so they must have swum in the same sort of way 284 00:20:24,920 --> 00:20:27,720 by sweeping their tails from side to side. 285 00:20:32,440 --> 00:20:37,599 Ichthyosaurs, unlike dolphins, also had back paddles. 286 00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:41,360 They, too, would have helped stabilise them as they swam. 287 00:20:46,200 --> 00:20:49,519 And what's more, the paddles of our ichthyosaur 288 00:20:49,520 --> 00:20:51,839 are particularly large and long, 289 00:20:51,840 --> 00:20:56,000 rather like those of the oceanic whitetip shark. 290 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:04,679 That shape helps the whitetip to cruise for long distances 291 00:21:04,680 --> 00:21:08,480 with very little expenditure of energy in their search for food. 292 00:21:13,000 --> 00:21:18,959 So, it could be that our ichthyosaur was also a long-distance traveller 293 00:21:18,960 --> 00:21:23,519 and only an infrequent visitor to the Lyme Regis seas, 294 00:21:23,520 --> 00:21:28,600 which could be why no-one has ever found one of these here before. 295 00:21:35,760 --> 00:21:39,680 Back at the dig site, the rain has stopped at last. 296 00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:46,680 But the storm is a reminder that winter is on its way. 297 00:21:47,960 --> 00:21:50,879 The team must try to extract the rest of the dragon's body 298 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:53,440 before worse weather arrives. 299 00:21:55,120 --> 00:21:56,639 That's how hard the rock is. 300 00:21:56,640 --> 00:21:58,839 It's actually smashed the end off the chisel. 301 00:21:58,840 --> 00:22:01,080 So, you can see what we're dealing with. 302 00:22:12,120 --> 00:22:16,239 At last, they find signs of the rest of the skeleton. 303 00:22:16,240 --> 00:22:19,359 - Lots and lots of bone in there. - Yeah. 304 00:22:19,360 --> 00:22:22,199 Ribs and all sorts of stuff. 305 00:22:22,200 --> 00:22:26,159 And there's another particularly exciting discovery. 306 00:22:26,160 --> 00:22:29,359 - Is there skin? - Yeah, look. - Oh, really? 307 00:22:29,360 --> 00:22:32,479 They've found signs of fossilized skin. 308 00:22:32,480 --> 00:22:34,159 Rare, isn't it? 309 00:22:34,160 --> 00:22:35,720 Yeah, very rare. 310 00:22:38,200 --> 00:22:41,159 The blocks that contain bones and skin 311 00:22:41,160 --> 00:22:44,079 can't be thrown down like the other rocks. 312 00:22:44,080 --> 00:22:48,800 They must be carefully strapped up and gently lowered. 313 00:22:50,480 --> 00:22:52,439 That's the first block down. 314 00:22:52,440 --> 00:22:55,720 A few more to go, but if they go like that, I'll be very pleased. 315 00:22:57,360 --> 00:23:02,520 Two weeks after they started work, I go down again to check on progress. 316 00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:09,239 - How's it going? - Well, quite well so far. - A lot shifted. 317 00:23:09,240 --> 00:23:12,480 - Yeah, about 20 tonnes of it, I think. - Really? - Yes. 318 00:23:13,480 --> 00:23:15,959 How's it doing? Is it caught? 319 00:23:15,960 --> 00:23:18,799 - No, it's OK. - It's OK? Yeah. 320 00:23:18,800 --> 00:23:20,719 What do you reckon's in it? 321 00:23:20,720 --> 00:23:24,679 This block's got vertebrae, the other part of the ribcage 322 00:23:24,680 --> 00:23:27,080 and it's definitely got the back paddles in there. 323 00:23:27,081 --> 00:23:29,879 You can see a cross section through them. 324 00:23:29,880 --> 00:23:33,119 VOICEOVER: While the team continue lowering the huge blocks, 325 00:23:33,120 --> 00:23:35,959 VOICEOVER: Chris shows me what they've already collected. 326 00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:38,639 So, lots over here. 327 00:23:38,640 --> 00:23:42,639 - Ah, well, I can see something there. - Ah! 328 00:23:42,640 --> 00:23:44,720 - That's more obvious, yeah. - Yeah. 329 00:23:46,800 --> 00:23:49,519 Here, you can see, glinting in the sunlight, 330 00:23:49,520 --> 00:23:52,399 sections through the backbone, the vertebral column. 331 00:23:52,400 --> 00:23:53,879 Wow! 332 00:23:53,880 --> 00:23:58,119 And these are the ribs that are still attached to the vertebrae 333 00:23:58,120 --> 00:23:59,999 and these are the neurals 334 00:24:00,000 --> 00:24:01,320 that come off the backbone. 335 00:24:01,321 --> 00:24:03,320 The spines off the top of the back. 336 00:24:03,321 --> 00:24:07,199 - Yeah, but they've actually got skin preserved on them. - No, really? - Yeah. 337 00:24:07,200 --> 00:24:09,999 - Can you see that here? - Well, that's the very black. 338 00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,639 You can see it on the impression as well. 339 00:24:12,640 --> 00:24:16,959 VOICEOVER: This is great news, but something puzzles me. 340 00:24:16,960 --> 00:24:19,719 Would the head have been on this side or that side? 341 00:24:19,720 --> 00:24:23,040 Most likely here in this next slab. 342 00:24:24,680 --> 00:24:27,319 - And it's not there? - Not so far. 343 00:24:27,320 --> 00:24:29,439 Oh, boy! 344 00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:31,479 How many more tonnes to go? 345 00:24:31,480 --> 00:24:34,240 HE SIGHS, THEY LAUGH 346 00:24:36,640 --> 00:24:38,520 - Only a few! - THEY LAUGH 347 00:24:40,680 --> 00:24:42,280 OK. 348 00:24:50,680 --> 00:24:52,879 Once the blocks are down on the beach, 349 00:24:52,880 --> 00:24:56,399 the team remove as much excess limestone as possible 350 00:24:56,400 --> 00:24:57,999 to make them lighter. 351 00:24:58,000 --> 00:25:01,199 Even then, they're extremely heavy 352 00:25:01,200 --> 00:25:03,519 so to get them back to Lyme Regis, 353 00:25:03,520 --> 00:25:07,360 they're loaded onto a pontoon and towed back by boat. 354 00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:30,719 So, for the first time in 200 million years, 355 00:25:30,720 --> 00:25:35,000 our strange ichthyosaur once again takes to the water. 356 00:25:46,640 --> 00:25:48,439 The dig may be over, 357 00:25:48,440 --> 00:25:51,439 but the investigation is only just beginning. 358 00:25:51,440 --> 00:25:54,039 WHIRRING 359 00:25:54,040 --> 00:25:58,479 Now, the work becomes more delicate, involving not sledgehammers, 360 00:25:58,480 --> 00:26:00,679 but small vibrating chisels 361 00:26:00,680 --> 00:26:03,760 that chip off the limestone in tiny flakes. 362 00:26:08,480 --> 00:26:12,240 It's detailed work that will take months to complete. 363 00:26:14,320 --> 00:26:17,160 It's like a jigsaw puzzle of things you can't see. 364 00:26:18,600 --> 00:26:20,760 It's almost forensic. 365 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:25,559 You don't know the story, you don't know what's inside the block 366 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:27,640 until you reveal it. 367 00:26:29,320 --> 00:26:33,719 I've never seen in all my years an ichthyosaur that looked like this 368 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:36,879 so every other part of the skeleton that we reveal 369 00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:40,679 is very exciting cos you're never quite sure what's going on, 370 00:26:40,680 --> 00:26:45,080 what it's going to look like and it is, it's very different. 371 00:26:47,440 --> 00:26:50,359 Day after day and week after week, 372 00:26:50,360 --> 00:26:55,200 Chris and his team work patiently to expose more of the skeleton. 373 00:26:56,200 --> 00:27:01,560 And as they do so, the bones reveal something very intriguing. 374 00:27:04,160 --> 00:27:07,640 I've come down to Chris' workshop to take a look. 375 00:27:11,000 --> 00:27:13,720 It's a bit of squeeze past the plesiosaur. 376 00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:18,880 VOICEOVER: It really is an Aladdin's cave. 377 00:27:20,440 --> 00:27:21,920 VOICEOVER; After weeks of work, 378 00:27:21,921 --> 00:27:25,000 VOICEOVER: Chris has exposed the backbones and ribs. 379 00:27:26,200 --> 00:27:28,959 So, this is it so far. 380 00:27:28,960 --> 00:27:32,399 VOICEOVER: And in doing so, he's made a startling discovery. 381 00:27:32,400 --> 00:27:34,639 It looks like it's been attacked. 382 00:27:34,640 --> 00:27:38,119 - Gosh! - There's breakages all through the ribcage. 383 00:27:38,120 --> 00:27:41,319 If you follow one rib, you go along here, down to here, 384 00:27:41,320 --> 00:27:45,599 then this piece corresponds to this, which then goes over to here 385 00:27:45,600 --> 00:27:50,279 so one rib is now broken into three pieces. 386 00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:54,559 How extraordinary! But what's happened here? 387 00:27:54,560 --> 00:27:59,759 Here, the vertebral column's been actually pulled away. 388 00:27:59,760 --> 00:28:03,639 I'm fairly positive it was done in life and the paddles, 389 00:28:03,640 --> 00:28:05,679 the flippers have been ripped off. 390 00:28:05,680 --> 00:28:07,760 Where would they go? 391 00:28:15,000 --> 00:28:18,519 But they're in a very odd position, aren't they? 392 00:28:18,520 --> 00:28:21,119 I mean, they're pointing in the wrong direction. 393 00:28:21,120 --> 00:28:24,119 They should be basically in this position 394 00:28:24,120 --> 00:28:25,839 and facing the other way up 395 00:28:25,840 --> 00:28:29,159 and they've been ripped off and turned over. 396 00:28:29,160 --> 00:28:30,760 Gosh! 397 00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:33,200 Well, where was the head? 398 00:28:33,201 --> 00:28:35,559 The head should be here. 399 00:28:35,560 --> 00:28:39,719 - That's the very last vertebrae. - Back of the neck? - Yeah. 400 00:28:39,720 --> 00:28:43,599 So, the head's been torn off and there's no evidence. 401 00:28:43,600 --> 00:28:47,559 There's no teeth or pieces of bone. It's completely gone. 402 00:28:47,560 --> 00:28:52,559 - So, it's a murder. - Yes! - Really? 403 00:28:52,560 --> 00:28:53,800 Yeah, I think it was killed. 404 00:28:53,801 --> 00:28:57,519 - Did this predator crunch the head, do you think? - Who knows? 405 00:28:57,520 --> 00:28:59,439 It's 200 millions years ago, 406 00:28:59,440 --> 00:29:02,279 so it's a bit of guesswork, really, isn't it? 407 00:29:02,280 --> 00:29:06,920 So, it's a murder story without a complete body yet. 408 00:29:09,120 --> 00:29:12,880 To find out more, we need to reveal the rest of the skeleton. 409 00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:17,760 So it's all hands on deck. 410 00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:33,520 They've even roped me in. 411 00:29:44,040 --> 00:29:48,000 This is more difficult than it looks. 412 00:29:52,720 --> 00:29:54,040 Very good! 413 00:29:56,320 --> 00:29:59,400 Could you start on three days a week? 414 00:30:00,560 --> 00:30:03,360 - Is it all right? - It's good, yeah. - I haven't gone too close to the bone? 415 00:30:03,361 --> 00:30:05,960 - No, no. - Phew, that's a relief! 416 00:30:08,360 --> 00:30:10,920 But what of the missing head? 417 00:30:12,120 --> 00:30:13,639 If it was ripped off, 418 00:30:13,640 --> 00:30:16,639 Chris thinks he might still be able to find it 419 00:30:16,640 --> 00:30:18,599 somewhere on the beach, 420 00:30:18,600 --> 00:30:20,719 so at every opportunity, 421 00:30:20,720 --> 00:30:24,720 he scours the area where the first block was found. 422 00:30:28,600 --> 00:30:31,479 The best time to look is after a storm 423 00:30:31,480 --> 00:30:33,919 when a strong sea has moved sand and shingle 424 00:30:33,920 --> 00:30:36,640 and perhaps revealed the rocks beneath. 425 00:30:50,880 --> 00:30:55,479 To try and deduce just how our ichthyosaur met its fate, 426 00:30:55,480 --> 00:31:00,119 we've sent images of the fossil to someone who specialises 427 00:31:00,120 --> 00:31:04,280 in investigating the cause of death in prehistoric animals. 428 00:31:06,000 --> 00:31:08,879 You sent me some photographs and I had a look at some of these breaks. 429 00:31:08,880 --> 00:31:11,839 Now, first of all, I noticed this, here. 430 00:31:11,840 --> 00:31:15,079 If you look, you can just see this bulbous piece on the rib here. 431 00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:17,639 This is where the rib has healed after a break 432 00:31:17,640 --> 00:31:20,599 and the animal's gone on to live another day. 433 00:31:20,600 --> 00:31:25,119 There's a bite mark here that runs all the way up the paddle bones. 434 00:31:25,120 --> 00:31:26,998 You can see that it's healed as well. 435 00:31:26,999 --> 00:31:28,920 Yeah, it's definitely an old injury. 436 00:31:28,921 --> 00:31:32,719 - This animal's had a little bit of a bad start in life. - Yeah. 437 00:31:32,720 --> 00:31:36,359 But some of the other breaks tell a different story. 438 00:31:36,360 --> 00:31:39,759 If you look down here and especially this one, 439 00:31:39,760 --> 00:31:42,959 this fracture here mirrors that fracture there 440 00:31:42,960 --> 00:31:46,999 and then we can see a whole line of fractures 441 00:31:47,000 --> 00:31:49,559 where there's no new bone growth. 442 00:31:49,560 --> 00:31:52,759 Something has actually crushed this ribcage. 443 00:31:52,760 --> 00:31:55,279 So look here at these neural spines. 444 00:31:55,280 --> 00:31:57,439 These are absolutely perfect 445 00:31:57,440 --> 00:32:01,719 and then from here, they're broken all the way down to here. 446 00:32:01,720 --> 00:32:04,119 This is the last one that's broken and then here, 447 00:32:04,120 --> 00:32:05,679 they're perfect again. 448 00:32:05,680 --> 00:32:09,399 So, there to there is damaged. 449 00:32:09,400 --> 00:32:12,839 On the ribs, there to there is damaged and here, too, 450 00:32:12,840 --> 00:32:15,239 and also on some of these belly ribs 451 00:32:15,240 --> 00:32:19,079 so I think there's a bite which goes right across here. 452 00:32:19,080 --> 00:32:24,679 That probably reflects the width of the skull of the animal that bit it. 453 00:32:24,680 --> 00:32:27,639 Yeah, yeah. So it came in across here, almost. 454 00:32:27,640 --> 00:32:29,239 Somewhere like that, yeah. 455 00:32:29,240 --> 00:32:33,039 There was a massive bite, it caused catastrophic injury 456 00:32:33,040 --> 00:32:35,959 and, remember, the ribcage is protecting lungs. 457 00:32:35,960 --> 00:32:40,839 This was an air-breathing marine animal and as a swimmer, 458 00:32:40,840 --> 00:32:44,159 these lungs are vital not just for breathing, but for its buoyancy. 459 00:32:44,160 --> 00:32:47,999 So, once this ribcage is punctured and the lungs are punctured, 460 00:32:48,000 --> 00:32:49,399 this animal is dead. 461 00:32:49,400 --> 00:32:50,560 It can't breathe 462 00:32:50,561 --> 00:32:53,239 and also it's going to sink straight down to the sea floor as well. 463 00:32:53,240 --> 00:32:57,799 It's quite likely that the animal that killed this animal, 464 00:32:57,800 --> 00:32:59,919 presumably it was looking for food, 465 00:32:59,920 --> 00:33:01,479 it didn't get to eat it. 466 00:33:01,480 --> 00:33:03,559 Oh, no, I think it just killed it. 467 00:33:03,560 --> 00:33:05,560 It didn't eat it, or else it wouldn't be so intact. 468 00:33:05,561 --> 00:33:08,599 So this probably all took place in the surface water, 469 00:33:08,600 --> 00:33:10,679 but as soon as it's done this injury, 470 00:33:10,680 --> 00:33:13,959 this thing just sank like a stone straight down to the sea floor 471 00:33:13,960 --> 00:33:17,719 and then it was lost to the animal that was trying to eat it. 472 00:33:17,720 --> 00:33:21,920 So, it looks as if Chris' attack theory might be right. 473 00:33:23,000 --> 00:33:26,039 But what type of creature could possibly have inflicted 474 00:33:26,040 --> 00:33:29,000 so much damage to our sea dragon? 475 00:33:30,480 --> 00:33:35,320 A rather unusual fossil in Chris' collection might give us a clue. 476 00:33:41,080 --> 00:33:48,399 This is fossilised ichthyosaur droppings called a coprolite 477 00:33:48,400 --> 00:33:50,799 and what makes it particularly interesting 478 00:33:50,800 --> 00:33:56,760 is that within this piece of dung, you can see fish scales. 479 00:33:59,880 --> 00:34:04,159 So, that shows that ichthyosaurs were fish eaters, 480 00:34:04,160 --> 00:34:09,879 but more than that, this one is even more interesting 481 00:34:09,880 --> 00:34:17,239 because in this piece of dung, there are teeth - ichthyosaur teeth. 482 00:34:17,240 --> 00:34:23,599 So, the animal that produced this was almost certainly a cannibal. 483 00:34:23,600 --> 00:34:27,400 It ate other ichthyosaur species. 484 00:34:28,840 --> 00:34:33,040 Could it be that our dragon was killed by one of its own kind? 485 00:34:40,720 --> 00:34:42,639 To find out more, 486 00:34:42,640 --> 00:34:46,600 I've come to the Natural History Museum of Stuttgart in Germany. 487 00:34:50,040 --> 00:34:52,919 Here, they have one of the most impressive 488 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:57,000 and varied collections of ichthyosaurs in the world. 489 00:34:59,720 --> 00:35:02,519 They came in all shapes and sizes, 490 00:35:02,520 --> 00:35:07,999 but of all the ichthyosaurs that existed 200 million years ago, 491 00:35:08,000 --> 00:35:12,200 there was one which was particularly fearsome. 492 00:35:21,520 --> 00:35:24,319 This is temnodontosaurus, 493 00:35:24,320 --> 00:35:27,879 one of the biggest of the sea dragons so far discovered. 494 00:35:27,880 --> 00:35:30,799 They grew up to 10m long 495 00:35:30,800 --> 00:35:34,439 and individual bones have been discovered which suggest 496 00:35:34,440 --> 00:35:38,000 that they could grow even bigger than that. 497 00:35:39,440 --> 00:35:42,279 The remains of these terrifying sea monsters 498 00:35:42,280 --> 00:35:45,719 were discovered in a quarry just outside Stuttgart. 499 00:35:45,720 --> 00:35:51,320 These are the biggest complete temnodontosaurus fossils ever found. 500 00:35:54,040 --> 00:36:01,319 This huge predator had the largest eye known of any animal, 501 00:36:01,320 --> 00:36:04,759 which would have given it extremely acute eyesight. 502 00:36:04,760 --> 00:36:07,959 Not only that, but the eye was surrounded 503 00:36:07,960 --> 00:36:11,119 by a ring of scutes - bony plates... 504 00:36:11,120 --> 00:36:14,720 to protect it from the water pressure at depth. 505 00:36:16,640 --> 00:36:19,319 So, with eyes the size of footballs, 506 00:36:19,320 --> 00:36:24,280 this monster was able to hunt at all depths of the Jurassic ocean. 507 00:36:33,560 --> 00:36:38,079 It also had rows of sharp teeth 508 00:36:38,080 --> 00:36:40,920 that would have allowed it to rip apart almost anything. 509 00:36:43,440 --> 00:36:49,120 These teeth are shaped like blades, well suited for cutting into flesh. 510 00:36:51,360 --> 00:36:55,359 And here's another specimen of temnodontosaurus 511 00:36:55,360 --> 00:36:59,240 that is proof positive that it really was a hunter. 512 00:37:00,240 --> 00:37:04,279 Here is its stomach and inside its stomach, 513 00:37:04,280 --> 00:37:08,159 you can see these tiny little circular bones, 514 00:37:08,160 --> 00:37:13,200 which are the backbones, the vertebrae, of a baby ichthyosaur. 515 00:37:14,840 --> 00:37:18,519 So we now know that temnodontosaurus 516 00:37:18,520 --> 00:37:21,119 could devour young ichthyosaurs, 517 00:37:21,120 --> 00:37:23,639 but would one have been capable 518 00:37:23,640 --> 00:37:27,080 of eating an adult ichthyosaur like ours? 519 00:37:28,560 --> 00:37:32,399 Fossils of temnodontosaurus have been found in other regions, 520 00:37:32,400 --> 00:37:35,200 including our own Jurassic Coast. 521 00:37:37,640 --> 00:37:42,200 So, this monster could well be our prime suspect. 522 00:37:43,760 --> 00:37:45,999 To build our case further, 523 00:37:46,000 --> 00:37:49,559 we're going to analyse another specimen of the same species 524 00:37:49,560 --> 00:37:52,520 that was found on the Jurassic Coast. 525 00:37:54,360 --> 00:37:58,119 This is the skull of a temnodontosaurus 526 00:37:58,120 --> 00:38:01,759 and as you can see, it's huge. 527 00:38:01,760 --> 00:38:04,679 This specimen was found by Mary Anning 528 00:38:04,680 --> 00:38:08,359 on the Dorset coast in the 19th century 529 00:38:08,360 --> 00:38:11,119 and we are hoping that we may be able to use it 530 00:38:11,120 --> 00:38:13,679 with the latest techniques 531 00:38:13,680 --> 00:38:19,039 to tell us just how powerful these great jaws could be. 532 00:38:19,040 --> 00:38:22,879 So, for the first time ever, our team of scientists 533 00:38:22,880 --> 00:38:24,999 are going to attempt to calculate 534 00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:28,800 the bite strength of a temnodontosaurus. 535 00:38:29,920 --> 00:38:32,800 The first step is to scan the skull. 536 00:38:35,720 --> 00:38:38,159 Not as easy as it sounds. 537 00:38:38,160 --> 00:38:40,039 Very few scanners are big enough, 538 00:38:40,040 --> 00:38:42,839 but there's one here at the Royal Veterinary College, 539 00:38:42,840 --> 00:38:45,800 where they're more accustomed to scanning horses. 540 00:38:51,440 --> 00:38:57,600 The temnodontosaurus skull is 2m long and weighs more than 200kg. 541 00:38:59,320 --> 00:39:01,559 Luckily, it's in two pieces. 542 00:39:01,560 --> 00:39:05,920 Otherwise it couldn't be fitted into even this huge scanner. 543 00:39:07,600 --> 00:39:09,720 OK. One, two, three and up. 544 00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:25,239 These scans will help the team 545 00:39:25,240 --> 00:39:28,919 to not only reconstruct the temnodontosaurus' skull, 546 00:39:28,920 --> 00:39:32,599 but also work out the size of its jaw muscles. 547 00:39:32,600 --> 00:39:36,279 They can then assess the power of this huge predator's bite 548 00:39:36,280 --> 00:39:41,040 and see if it was strong enough to kill our ichthyosaur. 549 00:39:42,680 --> 00:39:44,719 Temnodontosaurs are unusual 550 00:39:44,720 --> 00:39:48,799 in that they had huge, sharp teeth for cutting through flesh, 551 00:39:48,800 --> 00:39:52,559 but how did other ichthyosaurs catch their prey? 552 00:39:52,560 --> 00:39:57,400 To get a clue, I've come to see a modern day predator in action. 553 00:40:08,280 --> 00:40:15,320 That is a gharial crocodile from Indonesia. 554 00:40:17,320 --> 00:40:20,639 Its jaws, as you can see, are not wide and flat 555 00:40:20,640 --> 00:40:22,919 like an African crocodile's, 556 00:40:22,920 --> 00:40:26,319 but long and thin and because of that shape, 557 00:40:26,320 --> 00:40:28,599 there's very little resistance to the water 558 00:40:28,600 --> 00:40:32,880 so they can snatch fish, which they do very effectively. 559 00:40:35,360 --> 00:40:39,000 They're very formidable animals indeed. 560 00:40:55,520 --> 00:40:59,319 Ichthyosaurs must have fed in much the same way as that. 561 00:40:59,320 --> 00:41:03,439 Their jaws were very similar to those of the gharial... 562 00:41:03,440 --> 00:41:08,679 simple studs to grip the prey, no need to chew it 563 00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:11,239 because the jaws at the back were quite big enough 564 00:41:11,240 --> 00:41:14,039 to enable the animal to swallow their prey whole, 565 00:41:14,040 --> 00:41:16,200 just as the gharial does. 566 00:41:22,440 --> 00:41:25,159 Gharials regularly shed their teeth 567 00:41:25,160 --> 00:41:28,239 and here's one I've just picked out of this pool. 568 00:41:28,240 --> 00:41:33,439 You can see that they're very simple teeth, just like ichthyosaur teeth. 569 00:41:33,440 --> 00:41:37,680 But that's all you need if all you have to do is to grab a fish. 570 00:41:46,160 --> 00:41:51,399 So, it's likely that our ichthyosaur had teeth and jaws specially adapted 571 00:41:51,400 --> 00:41:54,439 to catch small, slippery fish and squid, 572 00:41:54,440 --> 00:41:58,000 just like a gharial crocodile. 573 00:42:02,080 --> 00:42:07,160 Back in Lyme Regis, the work on the bones has taken a dramatic turn. 574 00:42:09,840 --> 00:42:13,399 Chris has found that there is fossilized skin 575 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:15,999 over nearly the whole skeleton. 576 00:42:16,000 --> 00:42:18,600 It seems to be virtually covering the whole thing. 577 00:42:20,080 --> 00:42:23,399 It's rare to find any sign whatever of skin on fossils, 578 00:42:23,400 --> 00:42:25,160 let alone so much of it. 579 00:42:26,800 --> 00:42:30,239 Fiann Smithwick, an expert on fossilized skin, 580 00:42:30,240 --> 00:42:33,039 has come to take a sample back to his lab. 581 00:42:33,040 --> 00:42:35,079 We can look and see if there's any evidence 582 00:42:35,080 --> 00:42:37,119 of the original pigment preserved in the skin. 583 00:42:37,120 --> 00:42:41,479 - Oh, that's a lovely piece. - That's really good. That'll be perfect. 584 00:42:41,480 --> 00:42:45,159 Fiann hopes that this remarkably preserved sample 585 00:42:45,160 --> 00:42:49,120 might tell us what the skin looked like and even what colour it was. 586 00:42:50,640 --> 00:42:52,719 At the University of Bristol, 587 00:42:52,720 --> 00:42:57,519 he places a tiny sample of the fossilized skin in a machine 588 00:42:57,520 --> 00:43:01,360 that coats its surface with minute particles of gold. 589 00:43:13,240 --> 00:43:17,680 They will reflect the rays of a scanning electron microscope. 590 00:43:21,160 --> 00:43:24,039 It's astonishing that you can actually see 591 00:43:24,040 --> 00:43:26,920 the remains of skin on such an ancient fossil. 592 00:43:32,040 --> 00:43:35,119 But this microscope can also magnify its structure 593 00:43:35,120 --> 00:43:37,560 tens of thousands of times. 594 00:43:46,360 --> 00:43:49,639 Here, we have an exceptional level of preservation of the skin 595 00:43:49,640 --> 00:43:52,399 of our ichthyosaur, despite being 200 million years old, 596 00:43:52,400 --> 00:43:54,080 so the structures we're looking at here 597 00:43:54,081 --> 00:43:56,599 are around half a micrometre across 598 00:43:56,600 --> 00:43:58,719 and a micrometre is one millionth of a metre 599 00:43:58,720 --> 00:44:01,599 and you see here these little granules 600 00:44:01,600 --> 00:44:04,479 and these are preserved melanosomes. 601 00:44:04,480 --> 00:44:08,719 Now, melanosomes contain the pigment that you have in mammal hair, 602 00:44:08,720 --> 00:44:12,319 in bird feathers and in reptile skin and the abundance of them 603 00:44:12,320 --> 00:44:14,080 and the distribution of them can tell us 604 00:44:14,081 --> 00:44:16,159 about the overall colour patterns of the animal. 605 00:44:16,160 --> 00:44:18,719 So, having a high abundance means you're likely to be darker 606 00:44:18,720 --> 00:44:21,200 and having a low abundance means you're likely to be lighter. 607 00:44:21,201 --> 00:44:24,399 This area has come from the back. 608 00:44:24,400 --> 00:44:26,439 There's a large abundance of these melanosomes. 609 00:44:26,440 --> 00:44:27,758 There's a lot of pigment here 610 00:44:27,759 --> 00:44:29,040 and when we look at samples 611 00:44:29,041 --> 00:44:31,399 that have come from the bottom of the animal, 612 00:44:31,400 --> 00:44:34,559 we don't see this pigment in this level of abundance 613 00:44:34,560 --> 00:44:38,159 so it most likely had a much darker back than it did a belly 614 00:44:38,160 --> 00:44:40,399 and this conforms to a type of colour pattern 615 00:44:40,400 --> 00:44:42,640 known as countershading in modern animals. 616 00:44:44,360 --> 00:44:48,479 You can see countershading in lots of sea animals today. 617 00:44:48,480 --> 00:44:50,800 Great white sharks, for example. 618 00:44:56,560 --> 00:45:00,159 Both predators and prey are coloured in this way. 619 00:45:00,160 --> 00:45:04,360 It makes them more difficult to see both from above and below. 620 00:45:06,840 --> 00:45:09,120 So, this is the first time that we've actually seen 621 00:45:09,121 --> 00:45:11,959 evidence of a countershaded pattern in an ichthyosaur. 622 00:45:11,960 --> 00:45:15,079 So, that really is a step forward in our knowledge. 623 00:45:15,080 --> 00:45:16,759 It is and it can tell us 624 00:45:16,760 --> 00:45:19,439 a huge amount about the way the animal might have lived. 625 00:45:19,440 --> 00:45:20,959 Just from looking at that picture? 626 00:45:20,960 --> 00:45:24,600 - Just from looking at these melanosomes. - Great! 627 00:45:28,160 --> 00:45:32,359 Today, countershaded animals tend to live in open water 628 00:45:32,360 --> 00:45:34,240 where there's good visibility. 629 00:45:36,480 --> 00:45:39,439 Ichthyosaurs also lived in the open seas 630 00:45:39,440 --> 00:45:41,559 so being camouflaged in this way 631 00:45:41,560 --> 00:45:43,800 would have been very valuable to them. 632 00:45:49,240 --> 00:45:53,399 The latest scientific research suggests that countershading 633 00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:57,119 might also protect against ultraviolet light 634 00:45:57,120 --> 00:46:00,120 and even help to regulate body temperature. 635 00:46:04,280 --> 00:46:06,239 As an air-breathing creature, 636 00:46:06,240 --> 00:46:11,199 our ichthyosaur would have had to spend much time near the surface. 637 00:46:11,200 --> 00:46:15,200 So countershading could have been a benefit for that reason as well. 638 00:46:23,600 --> 00:46:25,319 There are, of course, 639 00:46:25,320 --> 00:46:31,000 many marine reptiles still living in the oceans today, like turtles. 640 00:46:33,480 --> 00:46:36,799 The biggest of them is the leatherback, 641 00:46:36,800 --> 00:46:39,239 whose ancestors, in fact, were around 642 00:46:39,240 --> 00:46:41,640 at the same time as the ichthyosaurs. 643 00:46:42,760 --> 00:46:46,079 Today, they come ashore to nest in many places, 644 00:46:46,080 --> 00:46:47,800 including the Caribbean. 645 00:46:49,360 --> 00:46:54,959 This huge leatherback turtle is laying her eggs. 646 00:46:54,960 --> 00:46:59,679 She's hauled her way up from the sea and dug a hole 647 00:46:59,680 --> 00:47:03,480 and now she's depositing about 100 of them. 648 00:47:05,160 --> 00:47:07,079 She'll then fill in the hole 649 00:47:07,080 --> 00:47:11,640 and then work her way down back to the sea. 650 00:47:13,240 --> 00:47:15,960 It's clearly a very laborious process. 651 00:47:17,600 --> 00:47:21,719 And that's the challenge facing all reptiles that live in the sea... 652 00:47:21,720 --> 00:47:25,200 having to come onto land to lay eggs. 653 00:47:27,480 --> 00:47:32,159 Ichthyosaurs were reptiles and they lived in the sea, 654 00:47:32,160 --> 00:47:35,399 but they were so well adapted to a life at sea, 655 00:47:35,400 --> 00:47:39,239 that they gave birth to live young 656 00:47:39,240 --> 00:47:41,279 and that would have saved the sea dragons 657 00:47:41,280 --> 00:47:44,320 making the dangerous journey onto land. 658 00:47:47,640 --> 00:47:51,119 There is remarkable evidence that ichthyosaurs gave birth 659 00:47:51,120 --> 00:47:53,920 to live young in the Stuttgart museum. 660 00:48:20,880 --> 00:48:27,199 And here is a truly extraordinary, beautiful, almost poignant fossil... 661 00:48:27,200 --> 00:48:32,880 proof positive that ichthyosaurs gave birth to live young. 662 00:48:34,120 --> 00:48:39,719 Here is the baby, just at the moment that it's leaving the birth canal. 663 00:48:39,720 --> 00:48:44,799 It comes out tail first and as soon as it was freed, 664 00:48:44,800 --> 00:48:49,039 it would have risen to the surface to take its first breath. 665 00:48:49,040 --> 00:48:52,399 But something happened before that did 666 00:48:52,400 --> 00:48:55,160 and here is the proof. 667 00:48:56,720 --> 00:49:00,960 Whatever it was, death must have been instant. 668 00:49:03,840 --> 00:49:06,919 So, ichthyosaurs gave birth to live babies, 669 00:49:06,920 --> 00:49:09,800 just as many sharks do today. 670 00:49:30,440 --> 00:49:33,239 After several weeks of research, 671 00:49:33,240 --> 00:49:35,719 the team at Bristol University have managed 672 00:49:35,720 --> 00:49:39,999 to reconstruct the skull of the temnodontosaurus 673 00:49:40,000 --> 00:49:43,080 so that they can analyse the power of its jaws. 674 00:49:44,400 --> 00:49:47,479 How do you assess the strength of this animal's bite? 675 00:49:47,480 --> 00:49:49,320 Well, the first thing that we need to know 676 00:49:49,321 --> 00:49:52,159 is the volume of muscle that could fit into the back of the skull. 677 00:49:52,160 --> 00:49:53,838 So the muscles are attaching round here 678 00:49:53,839 --> 00:49:55,400 and also there's a group of muscles 679 00:49:55,401 --> 00:49:57,479 that are attaching further forward here 680 00:49:57,480 --> 00:49:59,479 and if we know how much muscle volume there is, 681 00:49:59,480 --> 00:50:01,840 we can estimate how much force that muscle can generate. 682 00:50:01,841 --> 00:50:03,359 And what did you discover? 683 00:50:03,360 --> 00:50:06,239 We found out that our upper estimate of bite force 684 00:50:06,240 --> 00:50:09,879 was around 30,000 Newtons and to put that in a modern day context, 685 00:50:09,880 --> 00:50:13,799 that's twice as powerful as the largest saltwater crocodile 686 00:50:13,800 --> 00:50:16,280 - that's been measured. - Twice as powerful? - Yeah. 687 00:50:16,281 --> 00:50:19,640 - So that's enormous, yeah. - Yeah, it's a very powerful bite force. 688 00:50:28,200 --> 00:50:30,959 So, this must have been the animal 689 00:50:30,960 --> 00:50:33,919 with the most powerful bite of its time, mustn't it? 690 00:50:33,920 --> 00:50:35,559 That's absolutely right, yeah. 691 00:50:35,560 --> 00:50:37,119 Of its time, it would have been. 692 00:50:37,120 --> 00:50:39,159 Not only did it have a powerful bite, 693 00:50:39,160 --> 00:50:42,039 its jaw-closing muscles also attach quite close to the jaw joint. 694 00:50:42,040 --> 00:50:44,199 Now, normally in animals where that happens, 695 00:50:44,200 --> 00:50:46,999 they have quite a fast, but less forceful bite, 696 00:50:47,000 --> 00:50:49,519 but the fact that this animal is actually so big 697 00:50:49,520 --> 00:50:51,119 means that it has a fast bite, 698 00:50:51,120 --> 00:50:52,880 but also by virtue of its sheer size, 699 00:50:52,881 --> 00:50:55,079 it also has quite a powerful bite as well, too, 700 00:50:55,080 --> 00:50:57,000 so it basically has the best of both worlds. 701 00:50:57,001 --> 00:51:00,559 - So, this was the king of the Jurassic sea. - Or queen! 702 00:51:00,560 --> 00:51:01,920 Sorry! 703 00:51:04,280 --> 00:51:06,600 - Yeah. - Yeah. 704 00:51:08,080 --> 00:51:12,799 So, it seems fairly likely that temnodontosaurus was strong enough 705 00:51:12,800 --> 00:51:17,640 not only to kill our sea dragon, but to rip its head clean off. 706 00:51:20,760 --> 00:51:23,120 It must have been a terrifying battle. 707 00:52:02,840 --> 00:52:05,599 Our investigations have given us 708 00:52:05,600 --> 00:52:10,040 a pretty good idea of how our sea dragon died. 709 00:52:12,240 --> 00:52:14,319 But can the reconstruction work 710 00:52:14,320 --> 00:52:19,760 carried out at Bristol University tell us more about its life? 711 00:52:21,640 --> 00:52:25,599 All the blocks containing the fossil have now been scanned. 712 00:52:25,600 --> 00:52:26,999 With those scans, 713 00:52:27,000 --> 00:52:30,359 the team were able to separate the individual bones 714 00:52:30,360 --> 00:52:32,679 and then put them back together to create 715 00:52:32,680 --> 00:52:36,960 a 3D image of the ichthyosaur's body before it was attacked. 716 00:52:39,840 --> 00:52:41,239 They've added a head 717 00:52:41,240 --> 00:52:44,720 based on estimates of other ichthyosaur species. 718 00:52:47,440 --> 00:52:49,519 That's magnificent. 719 00:52:49,520 --> 00:52:50,800 This is the whole animal 720 00:52:50,801 --> 00:52:55,079 and we estimate that it may have been up to around 4.5m long. 721 00:52:55,080 --> 00:52:56,679 Is that bigger than most in Lyme? 722 00:52:56,680 --> 00:52:58,000 Yes, this is certainly bigger 723 00:52:58,001 --> 00:53:00,599 than most of the ichthyosaurs that we see at Lyme Regis. 724 00:53:00,600 --> 00:53:02,639 It looks huge. It looks amazing. 725 00:53:02,640 --> 00:53:04,919 Here are the forelimbs right at the front 726 00:53:04,920 --> 00:53:08,159 and we've got hindlimbs here and at the back, we've got a tail bend. 727 00:53:08,160 --> 00:53:10,319 This is supported by the backbone, 728 00:53:10,320 --> 00:53:12,559 which extends along the whole length of the body. 729 00:53:12,560 --> 00:53:15,679 - But that bend is natural, isn't it? That's not a break. - Yes. 730 00:53:15,680 --> 00:53:18,279 That gives strength to the lower element of the tail 731 00:53:18,280 --> 00:53:19,440 for driving it forward. 732 00:53:19,441 --> 00:53:21,039 Much like a shark, 733 00:53:21,040 --> 00:53:24,439 the tail bend is the main propulsive organ of the animal. 734 00:53:24,440 --> 00:53:27,039 So, could this be a new species? 735 00:53:27,040 --> 00:53:29,639 Yes, these pieces of evidence together 736 00:53:29,640 --> 00:53:33,239 suggest that it is going to be a new species and it's jolly exciting. 737 00:53:33,240 --> 00:53:36,200 - They don't come along every day. - Historic! - Yes. 738 00:53:37,920 --> 00:53:40,559 This is wonderful news. 739 00:53:40,560 --> 00:53:43,399 A sighting by Chris on the beach in Lyme Regis 740 00:53:43,400 --> 00:53:47,039 has led to the discovery of a new species of ichthyosaur, 741 00:53:47,040 --> 00:53:50,560 adding to our knowledge of these fascinating creatures. 742 00:53:51,720 --> 00:53:56,479 It's extraordinary how much you can discover from one single fossil. 743 00:53:56,480 --> 00:53:59,639 Digital reconstruction has allowed us 744 00:53:59,640 --> 00:54:04,559 to rebuild this animal to reveal how it looked and how it moved. 745 00:54:04,560 --> 00:54:07,239 We've discovered, for the first time, 746 00:54:07,240 --> 00:54:10,559 that this creature was countershaded. 747 00:54:10,560 --> 00:54:13,160 But that didn't stop it from being attacked. 748 00:54:14,160 --> 00:54:16,599 By analysing its bones, 749 00:54:16,600 --> 00:54:19,879 we've been able to work out that its most likely attacker 750 00:54:19,880 --> 00:54:21,599 was a temnodontosaurus, 751 00:54:21,600 --> 00:54:25,160 the most ferocious predator of the seas at that time. 752 00:54:29,000 --> 00:54:33,239 It's been a fascinating journey of discovery, but, for me, 753 00:54:33,240 --> 00:54:37,079 the real wonder is the bones themselves. 754 00:54:37,080 --> 00:54:41,280 I can't wait to see what they look like when they're finally cleaned. 755 00:54:53,800 --> 00:54:58,599 After many months of painstaking and patient preparation, 756 00:54:58,600 --> 00:55:02,159 Chris and his team have finally completed their work 757 00:55:02,160 --> 00:55:04,800 on the fossil of our ancient sea dragon. 758 00:55:16,240 --> 00:55:18,000 Here it is finished. 759 00:55:20,440 --> 00:55:22,359 Wow! 760 00:55:22,360 --> 00:55:25,159 It's really beautiful, isn't it? 761 00:55:25,160 --> 00:55:28,719 - I mean, it is beautiful, that's for sure. - Thank you. 762 00:55:28,720 --> 00:55:31,439 - It's a great specimen, isn't it? - Lovely. 763 00:55:31,440 --> 00:55:36,039 And how many new species have been discovered in the last 100 years? 764 00:55:36,040 --> 00:55:38,359 Very few, very, very few 765 00:55:38,360 --> 00:55:42,760 and it's thrilling to find something that's just never been seen before. 766 00:55:45,040 --> 00:55:47,599 Well, it was a long time spent 767 00:55:47,600 --> 00:55:51,039 just revealing the body of this creature, 768 00:55:51,040 --> 00:55:54,519 but it's also revealed this extraordinary story 769 00:55:54,520 --> 00:55:56,759 of life and death, 770 00:55:56,760 --> 00:56:00,759 predator-prey fighting it out in the seas 771 00:56:00,760 --> 00:56:04,479 200 million years ago just down there. 772 00:56:04,480 --> 00:56:07,319 Yeah, it's a fantastic story. 773 00:56:07,320 --> 00:56:10,800 Really, really thrilling and romantic. 774 00:56:13,560 --> 00:56:16,919 For Chris, this has been a labour of love 775 00:56:16,920 --> 00:56:21,999 and it's filled in another gap in the palaeontological jigsaw... 776 00:56:22,000 --> 00:56:24,399 a story that all started 777 00:56:24,400 --> 00:56:28,919 with an odd-looking boulder on a Dorset beach. 778 00:56:28,920 --> 00:56:30,439 It's extraordinary to think 779 00:56:30,440 --> 00:56:36,439 that some 200 million years ago exactly here, 780 00:56:36,440 --> 00:56:42,199 the greatest predator of its time was swimming around in the sea 781 00:56:42,200 --> 00:56:46,479 and that's what I really love about fossils and fossil hunting. 782 00:56:46,480 --> 00:56:50,559 It gives you an extraordinarily vivid insight 783 00:56:50,560 --> 00:56:55,439 into what the world was like millions of years before 784 00:56:55,440 --> 00:56:58,440 human beings even appeared on this planet. 785 00:57:05,200 --> 00:57:10,159 Ichthyosaurs died out around 90 million years ago. 786 00:57:10,160 --> 00:57:12,399 No-one knows why, 787 00:57:12,400 --> 00:57:17,479 but standing here and having excavated that spectacular fossil, 788 00:57:17,480 --> 00:57:19,999 it's not difficult to imagine a time 789 00:57:20,000 --> 00:57:24,400 when dragons really did rule the seas.