A study published Wednesday detailed the discovery of a horrific murdered sea cow, who may have met the most awful untimely fate.
The enormous sea creature is believed to have been killed by an ancient crocodile and subsequently eaten by a tiger shark, according to a study published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. The fossilized sea cow had deep bite marks on its snout, which the researchers believe means the croc was trying to suffocate it, or maybe just eating his face off like chimpanzees do to humans (watch “Chimp Crazy” on HBO).
Other large marks on the sea cow appear to be from the crocodile’s attempt to drag the sea cow into the depths for a “death roll,” similar to modern crocodiles.
Ancient sea cow was killed by prehistoric croc then torn apart by a tiger shark https://t.co/sWyCzbt6IZ
— Live Science (@LiveScience) August 29, 2024
As if things couldn’t get any worse for this big ole beast, a tiger shark tooth was found in the sea cow’s neck. A series of saw shark bite marks also appeared across its skeleton, suggesting multiple other monsters feasted on its flesh as it died. (RELATED: ‘This Is So Incredible’: Scientists Caught Footage Of Sharks ‘Walking’)
The fossilized sea cow was uncovered near the city of Coro in Northern Venezuela and is believed to hail from the Early to Middle Miocene epoch, roughly 23 million years to 11.6 million years ago. “Our findings constitute one of the few records documenting multiple predators over a single prey, and as such provide a glimpse of food chain networks in this region during the Miocene,” lead author Aldo Benites-Palomino told Live Science.
The findings suggest that little has changed in the oceanic food chain for millions of years, which is oddly calming given how much rapid change most people have to experience in our short lives.
