Tyrannosaurus rex is the king of the dinosaurs and is often labeled as the apex predator. The popularity of the movie Jurassic Park led many to believe that the T-Rex could run fast, roar like a lion and have a mouth with protruding fangs like a crocodile. But scientists from the University of Portsmouth published a study that said the T-Rex's mouth actually resembled a lizard rather than a crocodile.
Through the fossil study of T-Rex's head and teeth, Dr. Mark Witton and Derek Larson found that it has many similarities with the teeth of lizards such as the Komodo Dragon and the Tuatara, a species of lizard from New Zealand. The conclusion that theropod dinosaurs like T-Rex had lizard-like lips is also based on impressions of teeth and holes in the jaw. The hole in the jaw supplies the blood needed for the lips. It is very similar to the Tuatara which has the same jaw structure.
Scientists previously said the theropod's teeth were too large to be covered by lips, which is why T-Rex drawings often show them sticking out like a crocodile's mouth. This latest study says in fact this is not true and the size of the teeth in the jaws of theropods is the same ratio as in lizard species. This research paper has been published in the journal Science.
The T-Rex's mystique as an apex predator is eroding. Previously scientists said it had feathers like a chicken, couldn't run as fast as in Jurassic Park and chirped like a bird