Giant Crocs Chowed on Even the Toughest Turtles

If you've ever paid a visit to any number of museums boasting skeletons of prehistoric crocodiles, you know that they were absolute monsters, certainly capable of chewing on any prey they could get their hands on. But what about the remarkably tough and slippery shells of giant sea turtles? Would trying to chomp through that even be worth the effort? New research is saying that it probably was.

That's at least according to a study recently published in the journal Royal Society Open Science, that details how the teeth of Machimosaurus hugii were specially grooved to crack through turtle shell like a walnut cracker.

These same grooves also gave the teeth of the Late Jurassic period crocodile a serrated look, like tiny saws.

"As serrated teeth increase the efficiency of slicing into prey, our discovery may help us learn when this group of marine crocs shifted from feeding on small, fast-moving prey like small fish to large-bodied prey like turtles," research lead Mark Young of the University of Edinburgh told New Scientist.

So how exactly did these teeth function? There are actually two standing theories - both of which could be right. The first theory is that the grooves on the teeth, serrations called "pseudo-denticles," reduced flat surface area, puncturing through the layer of liquid that makes wet things slippery to help a croc maintain a firmer grip on its prey. This allowed its massive powerful jaws to apply more and more pressure to an unmoving turtle shell until - CRACK! - giant sea turtle for everyone!

The other theory is that the pseudo-dentitcles actually strengthened the structure of the croc's enamel, allowing it to bite harder without running the risk of breaking its primary means of hunting and intimidation.

Interestingly, Nature World News previously reported that sea otters have some of the strongest known enamel among modern animals. However, their teeth do not boast the same serrations that Machimosaurus hugii boasted 150 million years ago.