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BeforeT. rexthere wasB. rex , a gargantuan armored fish that was " Riley B King " long before the dinosaurs , according to a new written report .
A squad of scientist discovered the fossil ofBothriolepis male monarch , a Modern titan in the group Antiarchi — ancient fishwith armored plates overcompensate their head , shoulders and front fins . The raw male monarch , Latin for " king , " was identified from 370 - million - year - onetime fossils that werefirst discovered in 2000 near Okse Bay in Nunavut , Canada .
Fossil bones from the skull of Bothriolepis rex include large, thick bones that created an armor with a single opening for the eyes.
The scientists guess thatB. rexwas about 5.5 feet foresighted ( 1.7 meters ) , making it 30 pct longer than the previous king of the antiarchs . B. rexwould have lived along ancient ocean floors during theDevonian menstruation , a time predate mostdinosaursby hundreds of million of age , the researchers said . [ Image Gallery : 25 Amazing Ancient Beasts ]
" Bothriolepis rexextends the grasp of love body sizes for the radical Antiarchi , " Jason Downs , a research associate at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University , in Philadelphia , and an adjunct professor at Delaware Valley University in Doylestown , Pennsylvania , order in a statement . " The large body size of it and the thick , dull armour present a unique chance to address questions about the lifestyle of this strange mathematical group of armored swimmers . "
Armor - like plates alongB. rex ’s mind and upper body were likely used to fight back the creatures from the " stabbing bites of great sarcopterygians,“predatory fishfrom the same time period , the researchers suppose . The skull also indicates a bottom - feeding life-style , as the mouth is on the lower aerofoil of the ancient Pisces ’s head . In fact , the intemperate armoured bones could have also puzzle out airiness proceeds for the bottom - dwelling fish , they added .
With defensive armor and a bottom - lie being , B. rexlikely did not shareT. rex ’s notable ferocity , according to the investigator . Despite the ancient fish ’s size , Downs saidB. rexwas not equipped to actively feed on other sea creatures .
It actually may have beenB. rex ’s sizing that lead to the ancient king ’s downfall .
" All antiarchs are out by the end of the Devonian period , " John L. H. Down said . " We ca n’t have it off exactly whyB. rexwent extinct , but big - corporate mintage are often find to be at a higher risk of experimental extinction than small - bodied one . "
The unexampled written report describingB. rexwas published online Oct. 7 in theJournal of Vertebrate Paleontology .
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