How Ichthyosarians hurt themselves
Ichthyosarians (left) are giant dolphin-like reptiles that first appeared 245 million years ago. Image: ilbusca/iStockphoto Dinosaurs-like creatures may have injured themselves during leisurely deep-sea diving trips and not from resurfacing too quickly, as previously thought.A recent study identified bone deformities on the fossilized remains of Ichthyosarians, which were giant dolphin-like reptiles that first appeared about 245 million years ago.The lesions were similar to those human divers develop as a result of changes in body pressure, and suggest the reptiles suffered from a version of ‘the bends’.A new analysis by University of Melbourne pathologist Associate Professor John Hayman (0400 173 408) — published in the latest edition of the Naturwissenschaften: Science of Nature journal — sought to explain what may have caused the bone lesions.That research argues the scarring may be the result of deep diving and spending too long at depth, causing excess nitrogen to be dissolved in the body, and not...