A new extinct species of hybodontshark has been discovered in the Jaisalmer Basin of Rajasthan by researchers from the Geological Survey of India and the Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee by a team of officers. This discovery was published in the 4th issue of Historical Biology, an internationally renowned journal of palaeontology, in August 2021.
Key points
Thirty teeth specimens were collected from the region which proved that the species lived about 160 and 168 million years ago.
It was termed Strophodus jaisalmerensis, and it is the first time the Strophodus genus has been found in India.
Hybodont sharks were believed to have grown around 2-3 metres long. They went extinct 65 million years ago, most likely as a result of comparing with other species, such as sharks. It’s worth noting that dinosaurs went extinct 65 million years ago as well. But It’s unclear whether these two extinctions are related or not.