UNC to show reconstruction of prehistoric reptile

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — A University of North Carolina paleontologist and others will unveil a 12-foot-long skeletal reconstruction of a prehistoric reptile whose fossils were found in a quarry in Durham.

The unveiling of the rauisuchian (raw-ih-SOO-kee-un) is happening Sunday at Graham Memorial Hall on the campus of UNC-Chapel Hill. Paleontologist Joe Carter and others will be on available to answer questions about the project, which dates to 1994 when undergraduates found the fossils.

The rauisuchian is part of a family of large reptiles that were top predators during the Triassic period 220 million years ago.

The UNC team created a partial skeleton of the reptile. For 10 years, hundreds of students pieced together the entire reptile from casts of prehistoric fossils.

The state Museum of Natural Sciences eventually will display the reptile.