Pliosaurier austriacus tooth

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Researchers at the Natural History Museum of Vienna (NHM) have discovered the remains of a Pliosaur in Upper Austria. It is the first proof of this marine reptile species in Austria and the first Pliosaur evidence from the Cretaceous period throughout the Alpine region, they report in the scientific journal "Cretaceous Research". Paleontologist Alexander Lukeneder calls the discovery a "scientific sensation." In the framework of a paleontological excavation by NHM at Ebensee (Upper Austria) in the so-called Langbath zone, Lukeneder found a tooth from rock layers that date back to 132 million years ago during the lower Cretaceous period. "I didn't immediately recognize what it was and packed up the find," Lukeneder explained to APA. "It wasn't until my colleague Nikolay Zverkov from the Russian Academy of Sciences identified the tooth as belonging to a Pliosaur that I realized its significance."