Massive Armored Skink Fossil Unearthed in Australia

A newly described species of skink, Tiliqua frangens, was 1,000 times heavier than the typical member of that family and went extinct 47,000 years ago. The giant skink was estimated to have reached the size of an adult human’s forearm and weighed 2 kilograms. The discoverers believe there are plenty more giant skinks from the same era waiting to be identified. Frangens had heavy armor and spikes, making it too tough for most predators to handle. The extinction of many larger species around the same time may have changed the ecosystem in a way Frangens couldn’t adapt to.