00:00There is on our planet such a perilous place that even the most dreadful creatures of today would not survive there for a moment.
00:07This site used to be in the current region of the South-East of Morocco, known as the Plateau of Khem Khem.
00:16The history of this place dates back to about 100 million years, at the time of the Cretaceous.
00:22At first glance, one would have thought of an enchanting place, a luxurious forest, sparkling rivers under the light of the sun.
00:30Until you come across a terrifying dinosaur.
00:32Lions or current sharks do not weigh in front of the revelations of fossils.
00:37The Khem Khem region was dominated by formidable predators, including three of the most gigantic carnivorous dinosaurs ever discovered.
00:46Let's take the Spinosaurus, for example.
00:48This dinosaur surpassed all that could be imagined.
00:51A half-reptile, half-monster creature, reaching more than 15 meters in height, thus surpassing the Tyrannosaurus.
00:58Endowed with a muzzle evoking that of a crocodile and a dorsal fin, it reigned over the forests.
01:04But this formidable predator knew how to swim, making the waters just as dangerous.
01:09It captured gigantic fish, as if it were catching them with a simple gesture of shallow waters.
01:14There was also the Carcharodontosaurus, a carnivore whose name means shark-toothed lizard.
01:20Its teeth, as sharp as razors, tore flesh with freezing ease.
01:26This colossus, almost as large as a house, surpassed in speed, power, and aggressiveness most of the creatures that had trodden the earth.
01:35Finally, the Deltadromeus, a dinosaur with the appearance of a raptor designed for speed, tracked its prey like a ninja.
01:43Fast, and of formidable precision.
01:46Water and sky were not left out, populated by throbbing pterosaurs.
01:52Often confused with flying dinosaurs, these beings belonged to another category, more precisely related to close cousins of dinosaurs.
02:01These majestic reptiles overflew the Khems, Khems with a width reaching up to 9 meters.
02:06Their fingers were endowed with a membrane with a fourth finger, recalling that of bats.
02:12Their skeleton, of remarkable lightness, allowed them to glide with extraordinary ease.
02:20But the dinosaurs were not the only ones responsible for the terrifying atmosphere of the Khems-Khems.
02:25The waters also concealed formidable dangers, huge fish and creatures close to crocodiles.
02:34Their jaws, capable of crushing the waters, hung under the surface, ready to melt on any unlucky prey.
02:42Among these aquatic creatures was the Sarcosuchus, nicknamed Supercroc.
02:48This formidable reptile, 12 meters long, could easily swallow a human.
02:53Even better, it was able to attack an adult dinosaur and emerge victorious.
02:59Its jaws, of frightening power, left no chance to its prey, not even to the Spinosaurus.
03:06The Kelakans also frequented the rivers.
03:09These formidable predators could easily swallow a large fish.
03:15They were endowed with intriguing fins, which reproduced movements similar to those of our arms and legs.
03:21In addition, a particular articulation in their skull allowed them to raise their heads, strangely recalling a human behavior.
03:29Surprising fact, we thought that these creatures had disappeared 66 million years ago, at the same time as the dinosaurs.
03:36But recently, they have been rediscovered in the Indian Ocean, where they still thrive today.
03:42We had simply found refuge in the depths, and probably never noticed the impact of the asteroid having decimated the dinosaurs, or even the appearance of man.
03:51Rest assured, over millions of years, these creatures have become practically harmless.
03:57Their size has shrunk four to five times, although they still weigh about 90 kilos.
04:03Imagine their size at the time, the waters of the Kem Kems also sheltered huge Dipnustes and other frightening aquatic creatures.
04:11Drinking or swimming in these rivers was therefore a risky business, where one could be attacked at any time.
04:17What an incredible place, even the turtles reached the size of a car over there.
04:22Imagine surviving in a world where these gigantic creatures seemed omnipresent.
04:27What made this place unique was not only the impressive size of these beasts, but above all the exceptional density of predators that reigned there.
04:37You might think that it is unlikely that such a large number of predators can cohabit in the same place, and you would be right.
04:45Preys were rare there.
04:47This makes the situation even more frightening.
04:50These predators roamed the region, tracking the slightest trace of life.
04:54And when there was nothing left to hunt, they turned against each other.
04:59For years, scientists have been trying to understand this situation.
05:04Was it a feature of this era, where all the regions of the globe seemed so dangerous?
05:09Or did this place have something special?
05:12Some suggest that we would have only found fossils of predators, because the most peaceful animals would have disappeared.
05:20And that the fossil remains would be so biased.
05:24But in the end, the mystery remains whole.
05:28The environment was just as captivating as the creatures that lived there, although slightly more hospitable.
05:34Imagine.
05:35This desert, now arid, was once a green, wet and river-crossed paradise.
05:42The sun was burning the earth intensely, and the climate was so hot that even the poles were temperate.
05:49The weather was extreme, alternating between dry seasons and violent storms that shaped both the landscape and life.
05:56Tremendous rivers crossed this territory, carving their way from the Sahara to the ancient Tethys Ocean, to the north.
06:04If you had been able to observe this panorama, you would have seen gigantic interconnected basins, and beyond, the central Atlantic.
06:12The floodplains stretched out under a scorching hot sky.
06:16These rivers were unpredictable, calm and peaceful one day, then burst like beasts in fury the next day.
06:25At first, these watercourses were of impressive power, digging deep canals and forming huge bands of sand.
06:32But, over time, their flow slowed down, and the landscape metamorphosed, from shallow ponds to salt expanses.
06:40The water, gradually withdrawing, left behind it a mosaic of wet areas and peaceful watercourses.
06:49Today, the Kem Kems have become a vast rocky desert where time seems to have frozen for millions of years.
06:55If you ventured there, you would discover a huge, steep cliff, its rocky surface stretching to the border between Morocco and Algeria, bathed in the sun's raw and relentless light.
07:07Under your feet would hide the remains of fossilized history, one of the reasons why this place has captivated scientists so much.
07:15This site probably houses one of the richest and most complete collections of fossils in North Africa.
07:21Of course, other regions of Africa, such as the Baharia Formation in Egypt, also have fossils,
07:28but they do not provide as much information about the life of this time as the Kem Kem site.
07:33This is explained by the presence of the rivers mentioned earlier.
07:37In the warmer and more arid areas, these watercourses have either eroded or buried under the sand.
07:45The first discoveries of the Kem Kem date back to the late 1940s,
07:49when a geologist named Georges Schubert discovered fossils of bone fish along the cliff near the border between Morocco and Algeria.
07:57A few years later, paleontologist René Lavocat truly expanded the scope of his discoveries.
08:03Travelling behind dromedaries, he explored the desert landscape and revealed a real fossil treasure.
08:10He discovered the partial skeleton of a gigantic herbivorous dinosaur.
08:14Finally, a peaceful creature in the Kem Kem.
08:18This long-nosed colossus roamed the ancient river valleys and fed on foliage like a peaceful herbivore.
08:25For several decades, scientists have undertaken only modest excavational expeditions,
08:31revealing here and there a few modest discoveries.
08:34Then, in the 1970s, German paleontologist Helmut Alberti led his team in the Kem Kem.
08:42It was at this moment that everything took a spectacular turn.
08:45They discovered fossils of prehistoric fish, crocodiles, dinosaurs, as well as fragments of the famous Spinosaurus.
08:53Imagine the joy of the scientists of this expedition.
08:57Since the mid-1990s, the fossil field has undergone a real revolution.
09:03New and impressive species have been identified in the Kem Kem.
09:08Over the years, the pace of discoveries has not ceased to intensify.
09:12Paleontologists, equipped with advanced techniques and tools, have discovered more fossils than ever before.
09:18And this is only the beginning.
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