Fossilized bite marks suggest there could have been a dramatic tussle between a gigantic terror bird and an even more massive crocodile around 12 million years ago.
Phorusrhacids, commonly known as "terror birds," were apex predators that terrorized prey in the ancient ecosystems of South America. While these flightless carnivores had little to fear on land, a new study, published Tuesday (July 22) in the journal Biology Letters, indicates that they weren't necessarily safe around water.
