The ancient world was ruled by enormous giants. Not only were there giant reptiles of the Jurassic age but the modern world tiny insects assumed giant heights as suggested by their fossilized remains. Recently, British scientists stumbled across a fossilized claw – part of an ancient sea scorpion. Given the large size of the claw, scientists have estimated that the scorpion was 8 feet long.
From previous fossil record yields paleontologists knew that monster insects did inhabit the young Earth, but there actual proportion have been estimated only recently with discovery of the giant scorpion claw.
The study was conducted by the University of Bristol paleontologists and was published online in the Royal Society’s journal Biology Letters. The discovery, made in a 390-million-year-old rock, provides valuable information on the last of the giant scorpions. According to Prof. Jeorg W. Schneider, a paleontologist at Freiberg Mining Academy in southeastern Germany, these scorpions were dominant for millions of years because they did not have natural enemies. Eventually they were wiped out by huge fish with strong jaws and teeth.
The ancient sea scorpions or Eurypterids are believed to be the ancestors of modern scorpions and possibly all arachnids – the joint-legged, invertebrate animals including spiders, scorpions, mites and ticks. The fossil was of a Jaekelopterus Rheniae, a kind of scorpion that only lived in Germany about 400 million years ago.
The obvious question that arises is that why were these ancient insects so large. Geologists say that gigantic creatures evolved due to higher level of oxygen in the atmosphere in the past. Some suspect that these huge sea scorpions evolved as a part of their effort to survive equally big and strong fish that had armour on their outer body and which doubled both as their enemy and prey. These insects are believed to be cannibals that fought and ate each other.
Therefore, the ancient world would not have been a nice place for the humans where 8 feet long scorpions were taller than the average people would.
Source: AP