16 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Paleontologists discovered Super-sized fossil skink

According to newly discovered fossils, a giant skink with spiky armor and powerful jaws roamed New South Wales until about 50,000 years ago.

A fossil lizard discovered by researchers at Flinders University has been described as by far the largest and most bizarre skink that ever lived.

In 2009 and 2013, scientists described two mysterious fossils – part of a jaw and skull – found in Wellington caves in New South Wales. They looked like they belonged to skinks – a type of lizard – but were unusually large.

Now, a more recent excavation at the same site has unearthed dozens of similar fossils. An analysis led by Kailah Thorn at the Western Australian Museum in Perth has revealed that they all belong to the same extinct species – a skink called Tiliqua frangens – that was about 1000 times heavier than typical skinks alive today.

Its official name is Tiliqua frangens, or Frangens for short. But its bulky body and serious spiky armor mean it already has a range of colorful nicknames including Mega Chonk and Chonkasaurus.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



Dr Kailah Thorn said she hoped people would have some fun with the discovery.

Sleepy lizards have been studied for more than 30 years by Flinders University scientists. Photo: Mike Gardner, Flinders University.
Sleepy lizards have been studied for more than 30 years by Flinders University scientists. Photo: Mike Gardner, Flinders University.

“There’s a bit of a meme trend around large ‘chonky’ animals with phrases like ‘oh lawd, he/she comin’ ’ associated with their arrival,” she said. “I’m keen to see what kind of memes come out when this animal is released on the world.

The lizard lived during the Pleistocene, alongside famous megafauna such as marsupial lions, diprotodons, and short-faced kangaroos, the researchers say.

“It reveals that even small creatures were supersized during the Pleistocene.”

The shape of its teeth suggests that, like modern-day shingle backs, it mostly ate plants. It may have needed strong jaws because it “ate something tough, like tough plant fibre or maybe a tough fruit or nut that dried out in summer”, Thorn says.

The giant skink’s closest living relative is Tiliqua rugosa, also known as the shingleback skink, which is found in dry, inland areas of New South Wales and other parts of southern Australia.

By comparing the two species’ body measurements, Thorn and her colleagues estimated that the extinct skink would have weighed about 2.3 kilograms. Most living skinks only weigh about 2 grams, with the heaviest, the shingle back, reaching 1 kilogram.

Read more in The Conversation: Meet the biggest and most bizarre skink ever found in Australia. It became extinct 47,000 years ago.

Cover Photo: The giant extinct skink Tiliqua frangens (Frangens for short) was 1000x the size of a typical garden skink (front right). Image by Katrina Kenny CC BY-NC-ND

Related Articles

This summer, a 2,000-year-old “thermopolium” fast-food restaurant in Pompeii will reopen to the public

8 August 2021

8 August 2021

Archaeologists excavated a 2000-year-old fast food and drink counter “termopolium” on the streets of the ancient Roman city of Pompeii...

Decapitated skeletons of Roman ‘criminals’ found on HS2 route

5 February 2022

5 February 2022

Archaeologists working with the HS2 project have discovered 425 bodies on the route of the new railway line – around...

An 800-meter-long colonnaded street from the Roman period discovered in Türkiye’s famous holiday resort Antalya

18 April 2024

18 April 2024

During the archaeological excavations in Hıdırlık Tower, one of the historical symbols of Antalya, the famous holiday resort in the...

8000-year-old unique “fish-figure” small home tool found in Turkey

20 October 2021

20 October 2021

During this year’s excavations in the Yeşilova and Yassıtepe mounds in İzmir, a unique “fish-figure” small home tool was found....

Paleontologists have discovered a new species of giant rhino

18 June 2021

18 June 2021

Paleontologists studying in China have found a new species of gigantic rhinoceros, the world’s biggest land animal. According to a...

3000 Years Old Bronze Age Settlement Unveiled Ahead of New Stadium Construction

27 July 2025

27 July 2025

Archaeologists have uncovered an expansive Late Bronze Age settlement in Wolmirstedt, Saxony-Anhalt, ahead of the construction of a new multimillion-euro...

Archaeologists Unearth a Roman Woodworking Workshop with Inked Tablets and Children’s Shoes in Isarnodurum

6 October 2025

6 October 2025

Inrap archaeologists have uncovered a Roman woodworking workshop in Izernore, France, featuring inked writing tablets, children’s wooden shoes, and artifacts...

Beehives of Saudi Arabia’s Thought to be Over 1,000 Years Old

20 July 2024

20 July 2024

Located in the majestic Sarawat Mountain range in western Saudi Arabia, the ancient beehives in the Maysan Governorate constitute a...

3,000-Year-Old Public Building Unearthed at Sogmatar: A New Chapter in the Sacred City of the Moon God

14 October 2025

14 October 2025

In a discovery that deepens our understanding of ancient Mesopotamian spiritual and civic life, archaeologists working under Türkiye’s “Heritage for...

A unique 2,800-year-old ivory-decorated piece was discovered in the Ancient City of Hattusa

13 November 2023

13 November 2023

An ivory-decorated piece, estimated to be approximately 2,800 years old, was found during the archaeological excavation in the Hattusa Ancient...

Secrets of the Ancient Walls: 1,700-Year-Old Roman Altar Unearthed at Vuçak Castle in Kosovo

19 April 2025

19 April 2025

Excavations at Vuçak Castle in the Kosovo countryside have led to a remarkable discovery: a Roman altar dating back to...

A unique gold brooch talisman with inscriptions in Latin and Hebrew was found in the UK

19 February 2022

19 February 2022

A Medieval gold annular brooch with prayerful inscriptions has been discovered in the parish of Manningford in Wiltshire, in the...

The museum’s “Oscar” Awards had Received this Year by the Troy Museum and the Odunpazarı Modern Museum

11 May 2021

11 May 2021

At the European Museum of the Year Awards (EMYA) online ceremony on May 6, Turkey’s renowned Troy Museum and Odunpazar...

Lost Egyptian City Unveils Ancient Tower Houses: A Glimpse into Early Urban Innovation

15 July 2025

15 July 2025

A recent archaeological excavation in Egypt’s Nile Delta has uncovered the remains of a long-lost city featuring rare and substantial...

Alone Against Time: The 3,000-Year-Old Last Hittite Monument of Western Anatolia Awaits Rescue

8 July 2025

8 July 2025

Carved into the cliffs of western Anatolia over three thousand years ago, the Karabel Rock Monument is the last surviving...