Matthew Myerscough, a civil engineer who survived a 300-metre avalanche fall on Snowdon in February 2014, discovered a 201-million-year-old Jurassic sea dragon
jaw bone at Lavernock Point in Wales. The rare fossil find, representing the first rhomaleosaur discovered in Wales, emerged from his post-trauma recovery fossil hunting.
From a Near-Fatal Avalanche on Snowdon to the Beaches of Wales
In February 2014, Matthew Myerscough experienced an accident that changed the course of his life. While hiking up Yr Wyddfa, also known as Snowdon, in north Wales, he was thrown off a small cliff during an avalanche. He fell 300 metres down the mountain before coming to a halt beneath more than a metre of snow.
The physical rescue came 20 minutes later while he was unconscious and barely breathing. He described the terrifying ordeal of being trapped: It was like being cast inside a block of concrete, I couldn’t move any part of my body. I couldn’t move a fingertip.
Although he recovered physically within a few days, the psychological toll persisted. Years later, he reflected on the hidden weight of the accident, noting, Looking back now, I realise, I have had some PTSD, external,
according to reporting from the BBC.
The Accidental Discovery of Wales First Rhomaleosaur
To process his experiences, Myerscough turned away from mountaineering and gravitated toward fossil hunting—a pastime he had first enjoyed as a boy during holidays in Whitby on the Yorkshire coast. While searching Lavernock beach near Penarth, south Wales, he made a remarkable find by complete chance. Encased in hard limestone bedrock, he uncovered a 201-million-year-old jaw bone belonging to an early type of plesiosaur known as a rhomaleosaur.
The discovery marked a significant first for the region. The fossilized jaw, featuring an unusual spoon-shaped end, represents the first rhomaleosaur found in Wales. Myerscough initially walked past the specimen alongside two fellow fossil hunters before deciding to turn back for a closer look.
He later observed how narrow the margins of discovery are, noting that if they had walked slightly differently, the fossil would have remained unexamined. There were so many places we could have walked that day. And when I think about the research paper being done at the moment about that fossil, and everything that will learn, everything that will be understood from finding it – none of that would have been possible if we’d been 3ft to the left,
he said.
Mindfulness and the Meditative State of Fossil Hunting
For Myerscough, now 40, combing beaches for remnants of prehistoric life serves as a vital mental anchor. Scanning rocky shores for imperceptible traces of ancient organisms demands absolute concentration. That intense focus acts as a powerful psychological refuge from the lingering anxiety of his mountain accident.
Being on the beach, and looking for fossils, and being kind of really focused on one specific task…
Matthew Myerscough, civil engineer, via BBC News
He added that worries and stresses melt away once he engages with the search. He has compared the mental state to the mindfulness achieved through yoga, sports, or watching a film. There’s this mindful, almost meditative state that I get into because I’m forgetting about all the other stresses and worries in life. I’m so focused on what I’m doing in that moment and what I’m searching for,
he explained.
A Track Record of Rare Prehistoric Finds
The Welsh sea dragon is far from Myerscough’s only significant recovery. Since returning to the hobby, his persistent fieldwork across British shorelines has yielded thousands of specimens, including a plesiosaur flipper, a large dinosaur footprint, and an ichthyosaur forefin and skull.
He chronicles these discoveries and maps out locations across the UK in his book, In Search of Sea Dragons: A Fossil Hunter’s Odyssey. Through his writing, he sheds light on the secretive world of avocational palaeontology, where collectors often keep locations confidential in hopes that storms or cliff erosion will reveal complementary pieces of a skeleton.
Despite his success, Myerscough cautions that the pursuit is physically demanding. Beachcombing requires carrying heavy bags filled with rocks, boulders, hammers, and chisels, carrying hazards that mirror those found on mountain slopes, including unpredictable cliff falls and rising tides. Beginners, he advises, should start by joining guided tours led by experts who can teach them how to spot subtle shapes in the stone. Once the eye adjusts, he notes, you start seeing them everywhere.
