The question asked by many paleontologists is, "Was there a dinosaur that swam?"

Research published by Dr. Nizar Ibrahim, a paleontologist from Chicago, might just answer this question.

The answer to this question began when a desert nomad brought a box to Dr. Nizar in an oasis near a Moroccan town called Erfoud in April 2008.

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Dr. Nizar said there was a blade-shaped bone with a reddish streak in the box. He brought the bones to a university in Casablanca but the bone remained unidentified.

The next year, he visited the Milan Natural History Museum in Italy. His friends in the museum showed him bones said to be from a Spinosaurus aegyptiacus.

The dinosaur was said to have existed 95 million years ago and lived in northern Africa. It was larger than a T-Rex. That's when the bone in the box struck him.

He then studied both bones and hit a conclusion: both bones came from the same ancient skeleton.

Amazing? The bones were found in two different locations 1,200 miles from each other.

In the research published online by the journal entitled Science, Dr. Ibrahim explained what he and his team discovered. The team focused on the features of the dinosaur, noting it was very suited for swimming.

The dinosaur was said to have a conical teeth, a snout likened to that of a crocodile and used for eating large meals and trapping fish.

Also, it had nostrils halfway up the skull. Researchers concluded it was in that position so the dinosaur could still stick its snout above water.

The dinosaur was said to be the largest known predatory dinosaur since it grew to at least 50 feet. It also had scythe-like claws and hind legs were rather short. Dr. Nizar noted it was very suitable for swimming.

Spinosaurus might have paddled like a duck because it was discovered it had flat feet. It also had a long and flexible tail, which researchers thought was for thrusting.

Researchers also calculated its mass and weight, concluding it would not be possible for the dinosaur to walk comfortably on land since it was too heavy for its legs.

An exhibition about the Spinosaurus dinosaur will be displayed at the National Geographic Museum in Washington on Friday.

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