Before this discovery, few fossils of Paleocene-epoch vertebrates had been found in ancient tropical environments of South America. More fossils were unearthed during the year, eventually amassing to a total of 30 individuals and 186 fossils in total, which were found in association with other giant reptile fossils of turtles and crocodilians. Cerrejón is in the Cerrejón Formation, dating to the mid- late Paleocene epoch (around 60-58 mya), a period just after the Cretaceous-Paleogene extinction event. The expedition lasted till 2004, in which the fossils of Titanoboa were mistakenly labeled as those of crocodiles.
In 2002 during an expedition to the coal mines of Cerrejón in La Guajira that had been launched by the University of Florida and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, the large thoracic vertebrae and ribs of snakes were unearthed by the students Jonathon Bloch and Carlos Jamarillo of the two institutions. Main articles: Cerrejón Formation and Cerrejón Although originally thought to be an apex predator, the discovery of skull bones revealed that it was more than likely specialized in preying on fish. Its vertebrae are very robust and wide, with a pentagon-shape in anterior view, as in other members of Boinae. This snake evolved following the extinction of all non-avian dinosaurs, being one of the largest reptiles to evolve after the Cretaceous-Paleogene Extinction event. The discovery of Titanoboa cerrejonensis led to it supplant the previous record holder, Gigantophis garstini, which is known from the Eocene of Egypt. Titanoboa is in the subfamily Boinae, being most closely related to other extant boines from Madagascar and the Pacific. It was originally known from purely thoracic vertebrae and ribs, but later expeditions collected parts of the skull and teeth. It was not named until 2009 in the journal Nature, being dubbed Titanoboa cerrejonensis, the largest snake ever found. Titanoboa was first discovered in the 2000s by students from the University of Florida and the Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, recovering over 186 fossils of Titanoboa from the site. 'titanic boa') is an extinct genus of giant boid, the family that includes all constrictors and anacondas, snake that lived in what is now La Guajira in northeastern Colombia during the middle and late intervals of the Paleocene. Titanoboa ( / ˌ t aɪ t ə n ə ˈ b oʊ ə/ lit.
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