Brit scientists unearth 430 MILLION-YEAR-OLD sea monster

THE FOSSILISED remains of a 430-million-year-old sea monster have been unearthed in Herefordshire.

By Sofia Petkar

14:30, 10 APR 2019
UPDATED20:09, 10 APR 2019
The weird creature has been named “Sollasina Cthulhu” by excited boffins who claim its flailing tentacles resemble horror writer H.P. Lovecraft’s most infamous beast.

The “exceptionally preserved” remains, which were dug up by British palaeontologists, enabled experts from the UK and US to create an accurate 3D computer reconstruction of the ancient monstrosity.

DISCOVERY: The fossilised creature had 45 tentacles branching out from a central body (Image: SWNS)

Although the fossil is only just over an inch (3cm) wide, the presence of a number of long tentacles would have made it appear terrifying to other small marine life.

The fossilised creature had 45 tentacles, branching out from a central body covered in armour plates.

Scientists believe it used these long limbs, or “tube feet”, to capture food and crawl over the seafloor.

It is also believed the tentacles were used to move food into the creature’s mouth.

Boffins claim its diet likely consisted of algae and other tiny microorganisms – just like modern sea cucumbers.

FAMILY: The sea creature was quickly identified as a distant ancestor of the sea pig (Image: SWNS)

Complete with soft parts, the fossilised remains were found in volcanic ash deposits that accumulated in what is now the county of Herefordshire near the Welsh Border.

It is believed that the sea animal lived during a time when most of Europe’s land mass, including Britain, was submerged in water.

Lead author Dr Imran Rahman, deputy head of research at Oxford University Museum of Natural History, said: “Sollasina belongs to an extinct group called the ophiocistioids, and this new material provides the first information on the group’s internal structures.

“This includes an inner ring-like form that has never been described in the group before.

We interpret this as the first evidence of the soft parts of the water vascular system in ophiocistioids.”

Sea cucumbers belong to the group of animals called echinoderms, and their closest relatives are starfish and sea urchins.

There are over 1,250 species of sea cucumbers that can be found in oceans throughout the world.

While ALPHA-PHONICS, at 36 years old, is not as ancient as the: 430 million year old “Sollasina Cthulhu,” it has been a very favored phonics reading teaching resource by many thousands of Homeschooling Parents! To learn more about ALPHA-PHONICS please see the Links below:

HOMEPAGE TESTIMONIALS REVIEWS AWARDS HOW TO ORDER