'Behemoth' 115 million-year-old ammonite fossil weighing 210lbs is found on a beach in the Isle of Wight
- The huge ammonite is approximately the same size as a car tyre
- It was discovered by two university students at Chale Bay on the Isle of Wight
- The 210lb (96kg) fossil is thought to be around 115 million years old
An enormous fossil weighing almost 210 pounds and measuring around two feet in diameter has been found on the Isle of Wight.
The ammonite was spotted and pried loose from surrounding rock by university students Jack Wonfor, 19, and Theo Vickers, 21.
After ten hours of work, the ancient shelled creature was pulled free of its tomb at Chale Bay on the Isle of Wight.
The ammonite was spotted and pried loose of surrounding rock by university students Jack Wonfor, 19, (pictured) and Theo Vickers, 21
An enormous fossil weighing almost 210 pounds and measuring around two feet in diameter has been found on the Isle of Wight. Ammonites are extinct sea creatures and part of the mollusc family
They say: 'At 55cm in diameter and weighing 96kg it is a monstrous heteromorph, and an awesome example of just how massive some of these heteromorph ammonites could grow to.
'In life, this giant Tropaeum cruised through the turbulent coastal waters of the Lower Greensand seas catching and ensnaring passing plankton and small prey with its tentacles.'
Mr Wonfor added that an ammonite of this size is likely to be a female known as a macroconch.
'Females are larger as a result of the role they play in the reproductive process.
'Because of this, its size, it is an amazing example to show sexual dimorphism within ammonites.
After ten hours of work, the ancient shelled creature was pulled free of its tomb on the Isle of Wight and scrutinised. The fossil hunting pair will further clean the fossil and preserve it, they say
Ammonites are extinct sea creatures and part of the mollusc family, like sea snails, with Mr Wonfor and Mr Vickers calling their specimen an 'amazing example'.
The 210lb (96kg) fossil is thought to be around 115 million years old, living during the Cretaceous period.
The pair, founders of the organisation of Wight Coast Fossils, describe the ammonite as 'truly titanic' and a 'behemoth'.
They say: 'At 55cm in diameter and weighing 96kg it is a monstrous heteromorph, and an awesome example of just how massive some of these heteromorph ammonites could grow to.
'In life, this giant Tropaeum cruised through the turbulent coastal waters of the Lower Greensand seas catching and ensnaring passing plankton and small prey with its tentacles.'
Mr Wonfor added that an ammonite of this size is likely to be a female known as a macroconch.
'Females are larger as a result of the role they play in the reproductive process.
'Because of this, its size, it is an amazing example to show sexual dimorphism within ammonites.
After ten hours of work, the ancient shelled creature was pulled free of its tomb on the Isle of Wight and scrutinised. The fossil hunting pair will further clean the fossil and preserve it, they say
The two fossil hunters, founding members of the organisation Wight Coast Fossils, found the fossil and carefully pried it free of the sediment
The Isle of Wight has an impressive track record for fossil finds, with its coastline a fertile ground for fossil hunters. This ammonite was found at Chale Bay
'Over the next few weeks I will carefully be removing the surrounding rock to reveal the rest of the ammonite that lays within.'
England's south coast has long been a fertile hunting ground for fossil fanatics, with many specimens discovered there.
A 95-mile stretch has even been given the moniker the 'Jurassic coast' for its remarkable preponderance of fossils and named a UNESCO world heritage site.
The Isle of Wight itself has an impressive track record, as a high percentage of its surface is coastline, opening more opportunities for fossils to be freed from millions of years of sediment.
Notable fossilised finds found on the Isle of Wight in recent years
210-pound ammonite
Pictured, an ammonite which has been described as a 'behemoth' and as 'truly titanic'
An enormous fossil weighing almost 210 pounds and measuring around two feet in diameter was found on the Isle of Wight in 2020.
The ammonite was spotted and pried loose of surrounding rock by university students Jack Wonfor, 19, and Theo Vickers, 21.
Ammonites are extinct sea creatures and part of the mollusc family, like sea snails, with Mr Wonfor and Mr Vickers calling their specimen an 'amazing example'.
The 210-pound (96kg) fossil is tthought to be around 115 million years old, living during the Cretaceous period.
Iguanodon tail
The fossilised remains of the the dinosaur — believed to be an iguanodon — were found embedded at the base a cliff-face near Brighstone
A fossilised tail from a dinosaur that roamed the world 125million years ago was discovered at the bottom of a crumbling cliff on the Isle of Wight in 2019.
The remains of the the dinosaur — believed to be an iguanodon — were found embedded at the base a cliff-face near Brighstone.
But excavations and attempts to salvage the tail for detailed analysis are currently being thwarted, due to safety risks posed by the crumbling cliff.
It is thought around six vertebrae have been uncovered, and local media reported that the dinosaur died and was exposed to the elements for several months before being buried by a large flash flood.
Footprint uncovered of a 130 million-year-old therapod
A dinosaur footprint, pictured, uncovered on a beach on the Isle of Wight by Storm Ciara belongs to a 130-million-year-old therapod, fossil hunters claim
A dinosaur footprint uncovered on a beach on the Isle of Wight by Storm Ciara belongs to a 130-million-year-old therapod, fossil hunters claim.
The print is thought to have been left by a Neovenator — a carnivore that could reach 25 feet (7.6 m) in length and weigh up to 4,400 pounds (2,000 kg).
The footprint was discovered by the Wight Coast Fossils group at Sandown Bay, on the island's southeastern coast, on February 12, 2020.
Chinese pterodactyl
The fossil of a pterosaur that is commonly found in China and Brazil was found on the Isle of Wight.
The petrified remains of the flying reptile's jawbone was spotted by a dog walker in Sandown Bay, on the island's south-east coast.
The jaw of the specimen — which has been dubbed 'Wightia declivirostris' — lacked teeth and is related to a group of pterosaurs known as the 'tapejarids'.
125million-year-old superpterosaur with 20ft wingspan
With a 20-foot wingspan and weighing a colossal 650lbs, the giant pterosaur cast an imposing figure swooping through the skies of the Jurassic Age.
And 125million years later, the beast's massive size continues to marvel scientists who have discovered the remains of one of the beasts wedged deep into the cliffs of the Isle of Wight.
The Hatzegopteryx fossil has shed new light on this magnificent species which some believe was the biggest flying creature of the period.
Tiny crocodile that roamed Earth 126 million years ago
Pictured, the remains of a 126million-year-old crocodile
A news species of crocodile that lived 126million years ago was discovered after a pair of skull fragments were found three months apart back in 2014.
Two fragments of crocodile fossils were found by two different collectors and led to the discovery of the ancient button-toothed crocodile.
It might have only measured two feet long, but the diminutive crocodile walked with Dinosaurs and had sharp teeth.
Based upon the two fragments, which were pieced together on the Isle of Wight and together measure around 11cm long, the animal is thought to have been around 2ft long from nose to tail.
A piece from the back half of the crocodile’s skull was found on a beach near Sandown on the island by collector Diane Trevarthen.
Crow-sized flying dinosaur that lived 115 million years ago
Pictured, the fossil found by Daisy Morris which belongs to a previously unknown type of pterosaur
A young girl, then just five years old, called Daisy Morris, spotted a fossil on the Isle of Wight in 2008.
Palaeontologists later studied the remains and found it was a previously unknown type of pterosaur.
It was named Vectidraco Daisymorrisae after Daisy was roughly the size of a crow and was a previously unknown type of pterosaur.
The flying reptile is from 115 million years ago in the Lower Cretaceous period.
With a pelvis length of 40 mm, the new animal would have had a total length of 350 mm, and a wingspan of 750 mm, the researchers say.
The pterosaur has now been donated to the Natural History Museum.
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