BBC NEWS ONLINE: 'Sea dragon' fossil is 'largest on record'

Description

The fossil of a marine reptile ''re-discovered'' in a museum is the largest of its kind on record, say scientists.

The ''sea dragon'' belongs to a group that swam the world's oceans 200 million years ago, while dinosaurs walked the land.

The specimen is the largest Ichthyosaurus to be described, at more than three metres long.

It was discovered on the coast of England more than 20 years ago, but has remained unstudied until now.

Palaeontologist Sven Sachs saw the fossil on display at a museum in Hannover. He contacted UK palaeontologist, Dean Lomax, who is an expert on Ichthyosaurs.

''It amazes me that specimens such as this [the biggest] can still be 'rediscovered' in museum collections,'' said the University of Manchester palaeontologist.