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A fossil discovered in 2011 in China may prove to be the missing link in evolution of Ichthyosaurs, researchers believe.

Cartorhynchus Lenticarpus which was discovered is an amphibious creature whose descendants were the large marine reptiles Ichthyosaurs. The Lenticarpus fossil is said to be around 248 million years old while Ichthyosaurs are known to have existed from 250 million years ago up to 90 million years, Huffington Post reported. The find is being hailed as the missing link that shows Ichthyosaurs evolution.

"Now we have this fossil showing the transition. There's nothing that prevents it from coming onto land," said study's lead author Ryosuke Motani, a professor in the UC Davis Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, in a press release.

That difference between Lenticarpus and its descendants was that the former had large flexible flappers like present day seals, aided by wrists for land mobility. The fossil is missing snouts that Ichthyosaurs had. Instead the fossil shows that Lenticarpus had a short nose. Researchers believe that the amphibious reptile may have fed on prey like shrimp which roamed the bottom of shallow waters.

The thick bones of Lenticarpus also indicate that it was a transitional specie in the process of life migrating to moving from land to water. It is well-known that species which evolved to survive in water from terrestrial ancestors, developed thick bones to withstand strong ocean currents.

The Washington Post pointed out that Cartorhynchus Lenticarpus lived four million years after the mass extinction 252 million years ago. It could thus give insights on how long life takes to regenerate.

"This was analogous to what might happen if the world gets warmer and warmer. How long did it take before the globe was good enough for predators like this to reappear? In that world, many things became extinct, but it started something new. These reptiles came out during this recovery," Motani said.