Plesiopleurodon

Ples-e-o-plur-o-don.
By Lilah Turner
Published on

Lilah Turner

Evolutionary Biologist

Lilah Turner investigates how prehistoric animals adapted to changing environments, offering insights into evolution's mechanisms.

Cite Feedback Print

Cite This Article

Turner, L. (2014, January 15). Plesiopleurodon. Prehistoric-wildlife. https://www.prehistoric-wildlife.com/species/plesiopleurodon/

copy

Name

Plesiopleurodon ‭(‬near Liopleurodon‭)‬.

Phonetic

Ples-e-o-plur-o-don.

Named By

K.‭ ‬Carpenter‭ ‬-‭ ‬1996.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Plesiosauria,‭ ‬Plesiosauroidea,‭ ‬Polycotylidae.

Diet

Carnivore/Piscivore.

Species

P.‭ ‬wellesi‭

Size

Skull 71 centimetres long.

Known locations

USA,‭ ‬Wyoming‭ ‬-‭ ‬Hailey Shales Formation‭ (‬Belle Fourche Member‭)‬.

Time Period

Early Cenomanian‭ ‬of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Skull and lower jaws,‭ ‬as well as cervical‭ (‬neck‭) ‬vertebrae and a coracoid‭ (‬part of the shoulder‭)‬.

In Depth

       Plesiopleurodon is a genus of polycotylid plesiosaur that is known to have lived in the Western Interior seaway of North America during the early part of the Late Cretaceous.‭ ‬As with others of its kind,‭ ‬Plesiopleurodon would have had a proportionately shorter neck and longer jaws than other plesiosaurs.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬A review of short-necked plesiosaurs of the Western Interior,‭ ‬North America.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Neues Jahrbuch fur Geologie und Palaontologie,‭ ‬Abhandlungen‭ ‬201‭(‬2‭)‬:259-287.‭ ‬-‭ ‬K.‭ ‬Carpenter‭ ‬-‭ ‬1996.

Never Miss a New Species or Fossil Discovery!

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT

© 2024 Prehistoric-Wildlife, All Rights Reserved [RVerified]

The information here is completely free for your own study and research purposes, but please don't copy the articles word for word and claim them as your own work. The world of prehistory is constantly changing with the advent of new discoveries, and its best if you use this information as a jumping off point for your own research.