Scientists announced this week the discovery in Moroccan desert cliffs of new fossil remains of Spinosaurus aegyptiacus, the biggest dinosaur predator ever.
The dino was a 50-foot-long, seven-ton African beast that breaks the mold for how a dinosaur predator looked and acted.
It was around 9 feet longer than Tyrannosaurus rex and was just as massive, according to Reuters.
Spinosaurus lived during the Cretaceous Period, and is also the only known dinosaur adapted for a semi-aquatic lifestyle.
It was the only known quadrupedal dinosaur predator as well, unlike carnivores like T. rex, Allosaurus and Giganotosaurus, which has typical two-legged stance.
Thanks to a front-heavy build, flexible tail, short limbs, and flat hind feet that may have been webbed and used for paddling, Spinosaurus dived into the waterways to get a nice seafood snack.
Its conical teeth and slender jaws were ideal for snaring fish, according to Reuters.
Its back was covered with a snail-like structure of bony spines 7 feet tall and connected by skin. It stuck out of the water as Spinosaurus swam after prey like sharks, car-size fish and crocodilians.
"The animal is unlike any other predatory dinosaur. There's no blueprint for it. There's no modern-day equivalent for it. It's looking at a completely new kind of animal," said University of Chicago paleontologist Nizar Ibrahim, according to Reuters.
Ibrahim led the study published in the journal Science.
Spinosaurus roamed the North African river system from Morocco to Egypt. It might not have been agile on land, but occasionally it did take down other dinosaurs, said Ibrahim.
"Its snaggle-tooth snout, sickle-shaped claws and monstrous sail give this beast a bizarre profile, one that will be immediately recognized by every kid on our planet," added University of Chicago paleontologist Paul Sereno, who also participated, according to Reuters.
Spinosaur's existence has been known for a century since fragmentary remains were discovered in Egypt by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer. Those were destroyed in a British bombing raid on Munich in 1944 however.
It was also featured in the 2001 movie "Jurassic Park III" defeating a T. rex.
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