Prehistoric Caiman vs Terror Bird: Fossil Reveals Brutal Encounter

A terror bird leg bone has been discovered with deadly bite marks inflicted by a prehistoric caiman, hinting at a brutal prehistoric conflict between two top predators. Also in the news this week: a bizarre new species of ancient reptile with a striking crest along its back has been found, a study has proven that simply seeing sick people can trigger the brain to start a rapid immune response, and much more!

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📜 Credits:
Presented by Ben G Thomas
Written by Ben Thomas, Douglas James and Nicky Thomas
7 Days of Science is produced by Douglas James and Ben Thomas
7 Days of Science logo, graphics and more have been designed by Michael Buhler

Sources:
Evidence of a caiman (possibly Purussaurus) attack on a Terror Bird:
https://royalsocietypublishing.org/do...
https://www.iflscience.com/terror-bir...
(Previous evidence of a Purussaurus attack on a ground sloth: https://royalsocietypublishing.org/do...)

A new bizarre Triassic reptile Mirasaura grauvogeli with a distinctive crest:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s4158...

Mixed-species dinosaur herd trackways discovered in Canada:
https://journals.plos.org/plosone/art...

How sleep schedule relates to diseases:
https://spj.science.org/doi/10.34133/...

The sight of sick people triggers an immune response:
https://www.nature.com/articles/s4159...
https://www.nature.com/articles/d4158...

The potential of ionising radiation-induced radiolysis for microbial life on other planets and moons:
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journa...

Humpback whale migration:
https://phys.org/news/2025-07-humpbac...
https://www.nature.com/articles/s4159...

Chapters:
0:00 - Intro
0:47 - Evidence of a caiman (possibly Purussaurus) attack on a Terror Bird
2:44 - A new bizarre Triassic reptile
4:11 - Mixed-species dinosaur herd trackways discovered in Canada
5:28 - How sleep schedule relates to diseases
6:39 - The sight of sick people triggers an immune response
7:52 - The potential for microbial life on other planets and moons
8:59 - Humpback whale migration patterns are changing
10:14 - Unboxing the Summer Curiosity Box!
21:09 - Outro