Placodonts were among the first marine reptiles. With their
trademark crushing teeth, they fed on shellfish and crustaceans. However, when
and where these highly specialized marine reptiles originated remained unclear
until now. A 246-million-year-old skull of a juvenile placodont was recently
discovered in the Netherlands. Paleontologists from the universities of Zurich
and Bonn have now proved that it is one of the earliest examples of this
saurians and that it originated in Europe.
For around 50 million years, placodonts populated the flat
coastal regions of the Tethys Ocean, in modern day Europe and China.