PARIS: Ancient crocodiles — long thought to have walked on all fours like their modern-day cousins — may have got around on two legs, according to new research published Thursday.
A team of researchers from China, Australia and the US analyzed footprints found at the Jinju Formation in modern day South Korea, a rich archaeological dig site that has led to the discovery of ancient species of lizards, spiders and tiny raptors dating back 120 million years.
They believe the footprints may have been made by a three-meter (10-foot) long crocodile ancestor — called Batrachopus grandis — that walked around “like a crocodile balancing on a tight-rope,” according to Kyung Soo Kim from the Chinju National University of Education.
“They were moving in the same way as many dinosaurs, but the footprints were not made by dinosaurs,” Kim said.
While the researchers initially thought the tracks were those of an ancient pterosaur — a winged dinosaur that roamed Earth until 66 million years ago — they more likely belonged to a particularly large and previously undiscovered member of the crocodylomorph family.
The 24-centimeter-long (10-inch) track prints give a sense of the size of these croc relatives.
Their legs, according to Anthony Romilio, a paleontologist at the University of Queensland and one of the study’s authors, would have been about the same size as those of an adult human. But their bodies were “over three meters in length.”
This would have made them about twice as large as relatives from the same time period.
The ancient crocodiles most likely would have walked flat on their feet, digging their heels into the earth much like humans do — leaving deep, narrow impressions.
Reconstructions of the crocodiles show they had a low center of gravity.
The lack of handprints and tail-drag marks found at the dig site, as well as the animal’s narrow gait, also indicated bipedal movement, Romilio added.
The finding could shed light on how other creatures from the Cretaceous period — such as pterosaurs — would have moved about, the authors added.
They noted that footprints from other fossil sites — such as the Haman Formation, also in South Korea — may have to be re-examined in light of the new discovery.
The study was published in Nature Scientific Reports.
‘Tight-rope walking’ crocodile may have stood on two legs: study
https://arab.news/ma5ws
‘Tight-rope walking’ crocodile may have stood on two legs: study
- Footprints found at the Jinju Formation in modern day South Korea were analyzed
WWII leader Churchill to be removed from UK banknotes
- The next series of banknotes due to be issued by the Bank of England will feature animals native to the UK
- The bank will gather views later this year about the specific wildlife the public would like to feature on the next set of banknotes
LONDON: World War II leader Winston Churchill is to be dropped from the UK £5 banknote in favor of a nature scene, sparking outrage from some lawmakers who said he should not be replaced by an otter or badger.
Novelist Jane Austen, artist J. M. W. Turner and mathematician and codebreaker Alan Turing, are also due to be phased out on the £10, £20 and £50 banknotes respectively as part of a redesign.
The next series of banknotes due to be issued by the Bank of England will feature animals native to the UK, in a shift away from images of prominent Britons.
Possibilities, subject to a public consultation, include badgers and otters as well as frogs, hedgehogs, barn owls and newts. Plants and landscapes will complete the scenes depicted.
“For more than 50 years, the bank has proudly showcased many inspirational historical figures who have helped shape national thought, innovation, leadership and values on its banknotes,” the bank said.
“The change to wildlife imagery ... provides an opportunity to celebrate another important aspect of the UK,” it added.
The bank will gather views later this year about the specific wildlife the public would like to feature on the next set of banknotes.
Bank of England chief cashier Victoria Cleland said the key driver for a new series of banknotes was how to stay ahead of counterfeiters.
“Nature is a great choice from a banknote authentication perspective and means we can showcase the UK’s rich and varied wildlife on the next series of banknotes,” she added.
- ‘Shaped this nation’ -
The new banknotes will not appear for several years.
They will continue to feature a portrait of the monarch King Charles III on the other side. Banknotes with the late Queen Elizabeth II also remain in circulation.
Previous banknotes have pictured other national figures including novelist Charles Dickens, physicist and chemist Michael Faraday, composer Edward Elgar, nurse Florence Nightingale and architect Christopher Wren.
The most recent series — rolled out between 2016 and 2021 — was printed for the first time on polymer rather than paper.
Ed Davey, leader of the Liberal Democrats, was among lawmakers who criticized the new nature theme.
“Let’s celebrate our wonderful British wildlife, sure, but Winston Churchill helped save our country and the whole of Europe from fascism,” he wrote on X.
“He deserves better than being replaced by a badger,” he said.
Main opposition Conservative lawmaker Alex Burghart called the decision “outrageous.”
“He (Churchill) earned his place on our five pound note. He must not be replaced with an otter,” he said on X, adding the “great people who shaped this nation” should not be forgotten.
