Alberta scientist finds giant fossil freshwater lizard in Hungary

EDMONTON – It grew up to six metres long and its toothy mouth and long, crocodile-like body was the terror of ancient rivers hundreds of millions of years ago.

University of Alberta biologist Michael Caldwell says he’s discovered a brand-new type of mosasaur (MOH’-sah-zohr) — a long-extinct family of marine lizards unrelated to dinosaurs — in Hungary.

Caldwell’s is the first mosasaur ever found that lived in freshwater and would have been able to walk on land.

He says it probably hunted like a huge crocodile, lurking just under the surface of the water to suddenly pounce on anything that moved.

Almost all other mosasaurs were giant undersea predators up to 16 metres long with paddle-like limbs similar to those on seals.

Caldwell says it’s an example of how the same animal can evolve in different directions in different environments.