Little is known about the oldest sea turtles that inhabited the Earth millions of years ago. The finding in the Baetic Cordillera, in Jaén, of the remains of a supposed new species of turtle, Hispaniachelys prebetica - considered the oldest in southern Europe - brought new clues six years ago. However, it was still not clear what group the primitive turtle belonged to. To resolve the matter, researchers studied the as-yet-unanalyzed fossils of the specimen, reinterpreted some of its features and provided new information on the morphology of these reptiles. The results marked a radical shift in fossil interpretation.
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