Schoolboy stumbles on remains of 250 million years old dinosaur
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The boy's miraculous discovery was confirmed by a team of local paleontologists who were dispatched to the site
A Russian schoolboy stumbled over the remains of a 250 million years old dinosaur called ichthyosaur, a reptile considered to be among the largest animals to ever have lived on Earth.
Dmitry Sirenko, a seven-year-old boy was playing along with his sister on the coast of Russky Island, located in the far east of Russia, when he came across a few unusual stones.
Sirenko said ''I love dinosaurs a lot, and have always dreamed of finding the bones of a real dinosaur.''
The boy's miraculous discovery was confirmed by a team of local paleontologists who were dispatched to the site. They believe the peculiar markings on the stones were the traces of an ichthyosaur, a massive prehistoric marine reptile.
The stone plate with the fossil was transported to the Primorsky Aquarium for further study.
Paleontologist Yury Bolotsky said ''There is still intrigue as to whether any skull fragments are in the rocks. That would have been absolutely awesome!''
“Although, this ichthyosaur could have lost its head 250 million years ago,” he added.
The scientists plan to carefully cut it apart, layer by layer, to check whether it contains a skull inside and to determine the dinosaur’s exact class.
The ichthyosaur has been described as one of the largest animals to ever have lived on Earth. Its body is believed to have measured up to 85-feet long.