Spinosaurus Mirabilis: The New Spinosaurus Species

Added: 2026-05-28

[00:00:00]A new species of Spinosaurus was just discovered and it might be the strangest one yet. Most people know Spinosaurus from Jurassic Park 3 as a giant land monster, but in 2014, fossils [music] revealed Spinosaurus aegyptiacus actually had short legs and a paddle-like tail built for rivers, [music] the design that inspired Jurassic World Rebirth. But deep in the Sahara Desert of Niger, paleontologists just uncovered something even weirder, Spinosaurus maribulus. Unlike its famous cousin, this giant sported a massive scimitar-shaped crest [music] on its skull. Scientists think it was for display and mating. Its interlocking teeth also [music] formed a perfect biological fish trap to grip slippery prey. But despite these adaptations, it wasn't [music] an ocean swimmer. Like modern birds, its air sac breathing system made it vulnerable to drowning in deep water and it lacked a gag reflex [music] to clear trapped fluid and that became its downfall. During a massive extinction event, underwater volcanoes caused rising sea levels. Saltwater [music] flooded the rivers, wiping out the massive freshwater fish Spinosaurus relied on to survive.