Decapitation in the long-necked Triassic marine reptile Tanystropheus

As they say, if you stick out your neck ...

From the abstract:

"Extreme neck elongation was a common evolutionary strategy among Mesozoic marine reptiles, occurring independently in several lineages. Despite its evolutionary success, such an elongate neck might have been particularly susceptible to predation, but direct evidence for this possibility has been lacking. Composed of only 13 hyperelongate vertebrae and associated strut-like ribs, the configuration of the long neck of the Triassic archosauromorph Tanystropheus is unique among tetrapods. It was probably stiffened and used to catch prey through an ambush-strategy. Here, we show that the neck was completely severed in two Tanystropheus specimens (Figure 1), most likely due to a predatory attack, providing vivid evidence of predator–prey interactions among Mesozoic marine reptiles that are rarely preserved in the fossil record. The recurring incidence of decapitation suggests that the elongate neck was a functional weak spot in Tanystropheus, and possibly the long-necked marine reptile bauplan more generally."

These Long-Necked Marine Reptiles Were Decapitated Tanystropheus fossils reveal how predators may have snapped the creatures’ necks with a powerful, swift bite from above

Decapitation in the long-necked Triassic marine reptile Tanystropheus: Current Biology (open access)

Ouch!