In Depth Yabeinosaurus is a genus of lizard that lived in China during the Early Cretaceous. When first described Yabeinosaurus was thought to have been like a small gecko, but this interpretation was based upon the description of juvenile remains. In 2005, adult specimens were described for the genus, revealing that Yabeinosaurus grew larger and … Read more
In Depth Related to the mosasaurs, the exact classification of Dolichosaurus is a little uncertain with its exact closeness to the Mosasauridae a little uncertain. Dolichosaurus is noted for having a long thin build and is speculated to have been a weak swimmer. This in turn has led to past speculation that it may have … Read more
In Depth Madtsoia is the genus that was used to name the Madtsoiidae group of prehistoric snakes that include others such as Gigantophis of North Africa to the much later Wonambi of Australia. Madtsoia is one of the older members with fossils indicating that it was active during the time of the dinosaurs. Unfortunately no … Read more
In Depth Although Globidens was not the only mosasaur to adapt to a diet of almost exclusively hard shelled animals, it does display perhaps the most specialised teeth. Rather than the sharp conical teeth seen in other mosasaurs such as Tylosaurus and Taniwhasaurus, Globidens had rounded teeth that had a ‘globe shaped’ upper portion of … Read more
In Depth Prognathodon was a late mosasaur that showed a trend towards a different kind of predation that saw it living like the much earlier basal placodont reptiles of the Triassic such as Placodus. This means that Prognathodon specialised in eating tough shelled prey items like shellfish, ammonites and turtles. The diet of Prognathodon was … Read more
The Discovery and Naming of Tylosaurus The discovery of Tylosaurus harks back to the ‘bone wars’, a fierce rivalry between the palaeontologists Edward Drinker Cope and Othniel Charles Marsh that took place towards the end of the nineteenth century. As such the naming history of Tylosaurus is muddled and can cause confusion to those who … Read more
In Depth Kleskunsaurus is a genus of lizard that lived in Canada during the Cretaceous. Further Reading - Borioteiioidean lizard skulls from Kleskun Hil (Wapiti Formation; upper Campanian), west-central Alberta, Canada. - Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 30(4):1090-1099. - R. L. Nydam, M. W. Caldwell & F. Fanti - 2010.