In Depth Kronosaurus is one of the more famous fossil discoveries to come from Australia, and as a huge short-necked pliosaur, Kronosaurus would have been an apex predator of the waters it swam in. The teeth of Kronosaurus are conical and up to thirty centimetres long, although most of that was root with up to … Read more
In Depth Classification and naming history of Rhomaleosaurus The first remains of Rhomaleosaurus were originally named by Alexander Carte and W. H. Bailey as a species of Plesiosaurus, P. cramptoni, which was in honour of Sir Philip Crampton, an anatomist who brought the remains to wider public attention. In 1874 Harry Govier Seeley found the … Read more
In Depth Originally described as a species of Plesiosaurus, this was the first pliosaur ever named which is why Pliosaurus is used as the type genus of the Pliosauridae. Related to the long necked plesiosaurs the pliosaurs adapted to fill a range of different predatory niches with some like Pliosaurus itself being hunters of other … Read more
In Depth In the early days of plesiosaur evolution back in the Jurassic, there were two main groups that were successful enough to become two of the main kinds of marine reptiles of the Mesozoic. These were long necked plesiosaurs such as Plesiosaurus and Cryptoclidus, and short necked pliosaurs (technically a sub group of plesiosaurs) … Read more
In Depth Fossil remains of Stenorhynchosaurus were first discovered in 2000, and later excavation of the fossil site between 2004 and 2005 revealed an almost complete skeleton. Also in 2005, paleontologist Oliver Hempe came to the theory that this pliosaur possibly represented a species of the genus Brachauchenius. Later more detailed study however identified this … Read more
In Depth Sachicasaurus is a genus of large brachauchenine pliosaur that lived in waters around South America during the early Cretaceous. Like other similar pliosaurs, Sachicasaurus is noted for having shorter jaws, and hence reduced number of teeth. Further Reading - A new large pliosaurid from the Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of S�chica, Boyac�, Colombia. Earth … Read more
In Depth Brachauchenius was once regarded as one of the largest pliosaurs, and this was down to the addition of a skull measuring 170 centimetres in length to the genus. However, in 2013 this skull was used to establish a new genus called Megacephalosaurus. This in turn has led to a size revision for Brachauchenius, … Read more
In Depth Eardasaurus is a genus of pliosaur known to have lived around European waters during the Middle Jurassic. The skull of Eardasaurus displays some proportional features that are similar to the famous Liopleurodon, including a diastema where the premaxilla meets the maxilla. However the skull of Eardasaurus suggests that as many as thirty-four to … Read more
In Depth Cardiocorax is a genus of elasmosaurid plesiosaur that lived during the latest stage of the Cretaceous. The fenestra (opening) between the coracoid bones is heart-shaped, and is the inspiration for the name which means ‘heart coracoid’. Further Reading - A new elasmosaurid from the early Maastrichtian of Angola and the implications of girdle … Read more
In Depth Thalassiodracon fossils were first identified and described as belonging to a species of Plesiosaurus by Richard Owen in 1840. It was not until over one and a half centuries later that the actual description of the fossils belonging to a distinct genus would come to pass. In addition to this several more species … Read more