#ichthyopterygia

[ancientmarinereptiles]

The face of a Good Boy™

Myobradypterygius hauthali by Nikolay Zverkov, 2015

[artbyconnorross]

bA piece I did recently as an homage to a much older one. The centerpiece of my drawing is an early relative of the ichthyosaurs, known as Sclerocormus. In a blogpost by Mark Witton, Witton notes that art often imitates life, and that these seemingly outdated images of ichthyosaurs, as erroneous as depicting a dolphin dragging itself across the beach, have been redeemed in a way. The description of Cartorhynchus in 2014 and then Sclerocormus two years later would show that these "proto-ichthyosaurs" were aquatic yet still capable of some terrestrial locomotion; think of sea lions as an example.

They almost would have resembled some of the very first pictures of ichthyosaurs ever made. I've always been fond of vintage palaeoart like this, so I paid homage to this piece by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins (probably one of the best names in history). The inquiring plesiosaurs and the crocodile in Hawkins's piece have been replaced with contemporary pachypleurosaurs, belonging to the genus Majiashanosaurus. The mass washed up on the beach here is a piece of driftwood with crinoids attached; it appears that in the Early Triassic, one would’ve found this a common sight in the seas of China. Attached to floating logs, crinoids could’ve grown to 35ft long, filter feeding on plankton passing by. These would have been the whales of their era. Unfortunately I could not replicate the flock of pterosaurs from the original - as this is the Early Triassic, there are no known flying vertebrates, the sharovipterygids are from a dozen million years later and aren’t known from China, and the largest animals flying at this time would have been dragonflies and giant lacewings, neither of which fancy the ocean much.

Sometime I'd like to recreate this image as accurately as possible again, but with paints like the original.

Getting the head shape right took way too long as I am much too used to dinosaurs. 

[wtf-triassic]

Helveticosaurus

By Tas Dixon

Etymology: Swiss Reptile 

First Described By: Peyer, 1955 

Classification: Biota, Archaea, Proteoarchaeota, Asgardarchaeota, Eukaryota, Neokaryota, Scotokaryota, Opimoda, Podiata, Amorphea, Obazoa, Opisthokonta, Holozoa, Filozoa, Choanozoa, Animalia, Eumetazoa, Parahoxozoa, Bilateria, Nephrozoa, Deuterostomia, Chordata, Olfactores, Vertebrata, Craniata, Gnathostomata, Eugnathostomata, Osteichthyes, Sarcopterygii, Rhipidistia, Tetrapodomorpha, Eotetrapodiformes, Elpistostegalia, Stegocephalia, Tetrapoda, Reptiliomorpha, Amniota, Sauropsida, Eureptilia, Romeriida, Diapsida, Neodiapsida, Sauria, Helveticosauridae 

Time and Place: Around 242 million years ago, on the Anisian-Ladinian boundary of the Middle Triassic

Helveticosaurus is known from the San Salvatore Formation of Italy and the Besano Formation of Switzerland

Physical Description: Helveticosaurus is one of the weirdest of Triassic marine oddities in terms of relationships - once thought to just be one of many different turtle relatives, it now seems to be a completely separate, just outside the group containing all living reptiles swimming creature utterly removed from the rest. It was a lopsided sort of creature, about 2 meters long with a widened torso - almost circular - short neck, and long tail. Its forelimbs were much longer than its hind limbs, and the tail was thickened at the top, sort of like the tail of a marine iguana, much like the contemporaneous Thalattosaurs. The head was small and rectangular, with sharp and pointed teeth filled throughout the mouth. It was probably covered in thick scales, and the hands and feet of Helveticosaurus were probably webbed to some degree. 

Diet: Given the sharp, pointy teeth, Helveticosaurus probably was a carnivore, eating a variety of fish, invertebrates, and probably its fellow marine reptiles. 

Behavior: Helveticosaurus had an extremely unique method of locomotion in the water. It was able to both undulate its body - sweeping it from side to side and using the tail to move through the water like living crocodilians and marine iguanas - and paddle, propelling itself forward with grand movements of its front limbs. These limbs were well built for swimming, and if Helveticosaurus hadn’t been an evolutionary dead end, it may have had one of the more unique methods of marine movement in the oceans. As a predator, it would have needed to use its weird swimming to reach for prey that one of the many other things it lived with could not get to. It also may have been able to come up onto the shore, perhaps feeding on animals nearby or going there to mate or escape danger in the ocean. That said, there are so many questions remaining about this oddball - did it lay its legs on land or give birth like most marine reptiles? Did it live on both the land and in the ocean for any length of time? In addition to this, the strange short face may or may not have allowed Helveticosaurus to be a suction feeder, sucking up the various small animals around it and snapping into them with its long teeth. This is just extra, and I’m giving up on trying to understand this thing now. Also, it couldn’t swim very well - at least, not like modern penguins or turtles - it didn’t fly, but made a good business out of doggy paddling and brute-forcing the action, making it one hardcore badass of a reptile. 

Ecosystem: Helveticosaurus lived near the Pangean coast, in the shallow marine waters of the Tethys sea. These marine habitats were probably open ocean, as little evidence of reef material is present in the same places as Helveticosaurus, though that is conjecture. Here it lived alongside a wide variety of brachiopods, as well as marine snails and Ammonites a plenty. There was also the Nothosaurs Nothosaurus and Lariosaurus; the Thalattosaurs Hescheleria, Clarazia, and Askeptosaurus; the Tanystropheids Tribelesodon Tanystropheus and Macrocnemus; the other Helveticosaurid Eusaurosphargis; the Placodonts Paraplacodus and Cyamodus; the Ichthyosaurs Cymbospondylus and Mixosaurus; the Pachypleurosaurs Serpianosaurus and Pachypleurosaurus; the Suchian Ticinosuchus; and an extremely wide variety of fish and sharks (to the point that it is literally impossible for me to list them all.) 

Other: We have no idea what Helveticosaurus is. We used to think it was a generic marine reptile, maybe a Placodont. Then, perhaps, an Archosauriform. Finally, now, we place it far apart from the rest, not even a proper Crown-Reptile. Still, the story isn’t over - maybe it, along with all other uniquely marine reptiles, are in one separate group? Who knows. These things are odd. I just can’t. It had two other relatives, one not named, the other Eosaurosphargis, which was even flatter around the middle. Honestly, it looks like a more plausible and marine Godzilla, in a weird, twisted way. Here we are. Triassic, what the fuck. 

~ By Meig Dickson 

Sources Under the Cut

Carroll, R. L. 1988. Vertebrate Paleontology and Evolution 1-698. 

Chun, L., D.-Y. Jiang, L. Cheng, X.-C. Wu, O. Rieppel. 2014. A new species of Largocephalosaurus (Diapsida: Saurosphargidae), with implications for the morphological diversity and phylogeny of the group. Geological Magazine 151 (1): 100 - 120. 

Li, C., O. Rieppel, X.-C. Wu, L.-J. Zhao, L.-T. Wang. 2011. A new Triassic marine reptile from southwestern China. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 31 (2): 303 - 312. 

Mazin, J.-M. 1981. Grippia longirostris Wiman, 1929, un Ichthyopterygia primitif du Trias inférieur du Spitsberg. Bulletin du Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle 4: 317–340. 

Motani, R. 2000. Skull of Grippia longirostris: no contradiction with a diapsid affinity for the Ichthyopterygia. Palaeontology 43: 1 - 14. 

Naish, D. 2008. One of so many bizarre Triassic marine reptiles. Weblog entry. Tetrapod Zoology. 

Nosotti, Stefania; Rieppel, Olivier 2003. Eusaurosphargis dalsassoi n. gen. n. sp., a new, unusual diapsid reptile from the Middle Triassic of Besano (Lombardy, N Italy). Memorie della Societa Italiana di Scienze Naturali e del Museo Civico di Storia Naturale di Milano Ile 31 (3): 1–33. 

Neenan, J. M., N. Klein, T. M. Scheyer. 2013. European origin of placodont marine reptiles and the evolution of crushing dentition in Placodontia. Nature Communications 4: 1621. 

Peyer, B. 1955. Die Triasfauna der Tessiner Kalkalpen. XVIII. Helveticosaurus zollingeri, n.g. N.sp. Schweizerische Paläontologische Abhandlungen 72: 3–50. 

Pieroni, V., and A. Nützel. 2014. Rasatomaria gentilii gen. n. n. sp. - a new Middle Triassic pleurotomarioid gastropod genus and species from Rasa di Varese (San Salvatore Formation, southern Alps). Rivista Italiana di Paleontologia e Stratigrafia 120:281-286. 

Rieppel, O. 1989. Helveticosaurus zollingeri Peyer (Reptilia, Diapsida) skeletal paedomorphosis, functional anatomy and systematic affinities. Palaeontographica Abteilung A 208:123-152. 

Rieppel, O. 1998. The status of the sauropterygian reptile genera Ceresiosaurus, Lariosaurus, and Silvestrosaurus from the Middle Triassic of Europe. Fieldiana: Geology, new series 38:1-46. 

Sepkoski, J. J. 2002. A compendium of fossil marine animal genera. Bulletins of American Paleontology 363:1-560. 

Witton, M. 2018. Helveticosaurus: the small-headed, long-armed Triassic marine reptile that just wants to be your friend :(. Weblog Entry. Markwitton.com. 

[typhlonectes]

Keilhauia nui • A New Ophthalmosaurid (Ichthyosauria) from Svalbard, Norway, and Evolution of the Ichthyopterygian Pelvic Girdle 

In spite of a fossil record spanning over 150 million years, pelvic girdle evolution in Ichthyopterygia is poorly known. Here, we examine pelvic girdle size relationships using quantitative methods and new ophthalmosaurid material from the Slottsmøya Member Lagerstätte of Svalbard, Norway.

One of these new specimens, which preserves the most complete ichthyosaur pelvic girdle from the Cretaceous, is described herein as a new taxon, Keilhauia nui gen. et sp. nov. It represents the most complete Berriasian ichthyosaur known and the youngest yet described from the Slottsmøya Member. It is diagnosed on the basis of two autapomorphies from the pelvic girdle, including an ilium that is anteroposteriorly expanded at its dorsal end and an ischiopubis that is shorter or subequal in length to the femur, as well as a unique character combination.

The Slottsmøya Member Lagerstätte ichthyosaurs are significant in that they represent a diverse assemblage of ophthalmosaurids that existed immediately preceding and across the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary. They also exhibit considerable variation in pelvic girdle morphology, and expand the known range in size variation of pelvic girdle elements in the clade.

read more: http://novataxa.blogspot.com/2017/02/keilhauia.html

[enzorochafotografia]

Ictiossauros

Definição

Os ictiossauros eram répteis marinhos gigantes que se assemelham a um golfinho com dentes grandes.

Eles viveram durante grande parte da era mesozóica e apareceram cerca de 250 milhões de anos atrás, um pouco antes dos dinossauros milhões de anos atrás; e desapareceu cerca de 90 milhões de anos atrás, cerca de 25 milhões de anos antes da extinção dos dinossauros.

Os ictiossauros é qualquer réptil marinho parecido com peixe da extinta ordem Ichthyosauria, variando de 1,2 a 12 metros de comprimento e possuindo um corpo redondo e afilado, uma cabeça grande, quatro nadadeiras parecidas com um remo e uma barbatana caudal vertical.

Os ictiossauros eram predadores nadadores rápidos com focinhos longos e corpos aerodinâmicos, levando a frequentes comparações com golfinhos modernos.

Como os golfinhos, eles viviam jovens – existem fósseis de ictiossauros no ato de dar à luz – e, portanto, eles não precisavam desembarcar em terra para se reproduzir.

No entanto, os ictiossauros tinham cérebros muito menores e olhos muito maiores que os golfinhos, sugerindo que eles não eram simplesmente análogos antigos desses mamíferos marinhos.

Ictiossauro

O que são os ictiossauros?

Os ictiossauros, cujo nome significa “lagarto de peixe” em grego, eram grandes répteis marinhos que viveram entre 230 e 90 milhões de anos atrás.

Pareciam superficialmente peixes ou golfinhos.

Os ictiossauros compartilhavam os mares da Terra com tubarões, peixes e outros répteis marinhos, como os plesiossauros e os pliossauros.

Os ictiossauros foram descritos pela primeira vez a partir de fragmentos fósseis desenterrados em 1699 no País de Gales.

Os ictiossauros evoluíram apenas 21 milhões de anos após a maior extinção em massa da história e desapareceram cerca de 25 milhões de anos antes da extinção em massa que matou os dinossauros.

Embora os ictiossauros às vezes sejam chamados incorretamente de dinossauros, eles não eram.

A estrutura do corpo dos peixes dos ictiossauros levou o biólogo Stephen Jay Gould a chamá-los de seu exemplo favorito de evolução paralela.

A evolução dos ictiossauros em formas aerodinâmicas semelhantes a golfinhos é ainda mais notável pelo fato de terem evoluído a partir de répteis terrestres sem qualquer característica corporal para trabalhar; nem mesmo uma pequena barbatana caudal.

Os ictiossauros mais antigos eram pequenos (cerca de um metro de comprimento) e não possuíam as nadadeiras longas dos ictiossauros posteriores, nadando em vez disso com um movimento ondulatório semelhante a uma enguia.

A maioria dos ictiossauros tinha cerca de 2 a 4 m de comprimento, com cabeça semelhante a uma toninha, focinho longo e dentes afiados.

Alguns atingiram 17 metros de comprimento, como o Shonisaurus, o fóssil do estado de Nevada, embora estes fossem muito grandes e muito menos típicos. O maior deles foi o Shonisaurus sikanniensis, o maior réptil marinho conhecido, com 21 m.

Os maiores ictiossauros desapareceram das extinções no final do período Triássico.

A maioria dos ictiossauros tinha olhos grandes e esbugalhados. Eles comiam carne, especialmente peixes e ocasionalmente aves marinhas ou répteis marinhos juvenis. O heydey dos ictiossauros estava no Triássico, e eles evoluíram na mesma época que os dinossauros. Após o Triássico e o Jurássico primitivo, sua diversidade decaiu e, no Jurássico médio, todos os ictiossauros pertenciam a um único clado.

Os ítossauros foram extintos no Cretáceo, um dos únicos grandes grupos a morrer por conta própria e não devido à extinção em massa no final do período.

Ictiossauros – Répteis aquáticos

Ictiossauros, qualquer membro de um grupo extinto de répteis aquáticos, a maioria dos quais muito parecidos com os botos na aparência e nos hábitos.

Esses parentes distantes de lagartos e cobras (lepidosauros) eram os répteis aquáticos mais altamente especializados, mas os ictiossauros não eram dinossauros.

Os ictiossauros tinham uma distribuição geográfica muito ampla, e seus restos fósseis abrangem quase toda a Era Mesozóica (251 a 65,5 milhões de anos atrás); mas eles foram mais abundantes e diversificados durante os períodos Triássico e Jurássico (251 a 145,5 milhões de anos atrás).

Excelentes espécimes fósseis ocorrem nos folhelhos do Jurássico Precoce do sul da Alemanha. Em uma amostra, todo o contorno do corpo é preservado, incluindo o contorno de uma barbatana dorsal carnuda e bem desenvolvida.

São conhecidos vários espécimes nos quais os restos esqueléticos de pequenos ictiossauros imaturos são fossilizados dentro dos corpos de indivíduos maiores, mesmo dentro do canal de nascimento.

O ictiossauro, um gênero representativo do qual o grupo maior leva seu nome, tinha cerca de 3 metros de comprimento e provavelmente foi capaz de se mover pela água em alta velocidade.

Muito semelhante à aparência de um peixe, é especialmente conhecido pelos depósitos jurássicos iniciais na Inglaterra. O corpo foi aerodinâmico; não havia pescoço distinto e a cabeça se misturava suavemente ao corpo. Os membros foram modificados em apêndices semelhantes a remos usados para guiar o animal.

Ele se impulsionou usando uma cauda semelhante a um peixe bem desenvolvida e ondulando o corpo.

A coluna vertebral, formada a partir de estruturas semelhantes a discos, inclinava-se para baixo no lobo inferior da barbatana caudal; o lobo superior não era suportado por osso.

As reconstruções precoces dos ictiossauros os mostraram com a coluna vertebral endireitada, e somente quando foram encontradas evidências bem preservadas é que a condição dobrada da coluna vertebral se tornou aparente.

O crânio e as mandíbulas do ictiossauro eram longos e continham numerosos dentes afiados.

Os olhos eram muito grandes, uma característica que alguns cientistas acreditam que deu a esses répteis a capacidade de discernir formas grandes, como as dos pliosauros, a longas distâncias. (Os pliosauros eram grandes répteis marinhos carnívoros que pensavam atacar ictiossauros.) As narinas estavam posicionadas bem atrás no topo do crânio (outra adaptação especializada à existência aquática). Provavelmente se alimentavam principalmente de peixes e outros animais marinhos.

É improvável que eles se aventurassem na terra e certamente se reproduzissem na água. Se estivessem presos em terra, estariam tão desamparados quanto as baleias encalhadas.

Os ictiossauros são conhecidos pela primeira vez no período triássico da Ásia, onde começaram como nadadores ondulados, de corpo longo, sem muitas das especializações vistas em espécies posteriores.

No final do Triássico, algumas linhagens haviam atingido grande tamanho. Fósseis do oeste dos Estados Unidos e do Canadá indicam que alguns ictiossauros podem exceder 13 metros de comprimento.

Encorpados e com longas barbatanas, estes parecem ter sido predadores de emboscadas que se alimentavam de peixes.

A forma típica de ictiossauros foi totalmente realizada pelo Jurássico Precoce, quando o plano corporal semelhante ao tunal, sugestivo de busca em alta velocidade e grande mobilidade, se afirmou. A essa altura, no entanto, as outras linhagens de ictiossauros haviam se extinguido.

Os ictiossauros persistiram nos tempos do cretáceo tardio e podem ter sido bem adaptados ao mergulho profundo e à predação nas margens próximas, mas todas as espécies se extinguiram bem antes do final do período cretáceo.

Um espécime do ictiossauro jurássico Ichthyosaurus intermedius, encontrado em Somerset County, Inglaterra.

Ictiossauros – Período Triássico

Enquanto os dinossauros governavam a terra, os ictiossauros, classificados de forma variada na ictiossauros ou na ictiopatiagia, compartilhavam os mares do mundo com os outros grandes grupos de grandes répteis marinhos, os plesiossauros e os mosassauros.

“Ichthyosaur” significa “lagarto de peixe”, enquanto “Ichthyopterygia” significa “remo de peixe”. Ambos os nomes são adequados.

Os ictiossauros mais antigos tinham corpos longos e flexíveis e provavelmente nadavam ondulando, como enguias vivas.

Os ictiossauros mais avançados – como o mostrado acima, em exibição no Museu Senckenberg em Frankfurt, Alemanha – tinham corpos compactos e muito parecidos com peixes, com caudas em forma de crescente.

A forma desses ictiossauros é como a de atuns e cavalas vivas, que são os peixes mais rápidos do oceano; como eles, os ictiossauros posteriores foram construídos para acelerar.

Observe as pás com as quais os ictiossauros nadavam; eles têm o mesmo plano básico que a mão e o braço, mas os ossos do braço são muito curtos, enquanto os dedos se alongam desenvolvendo muito mais ossos do que os três que compõem cada um dos dedos.

Foram encontrados fósseis raros que mostram os ictiossauros realmente dando à luz jovens vivos e bem desenvolvidos.

Os ictiossauros nunca tiveram que sair da água para pôr ovos. De fato, a partir de seus corpos aerodinâmicos, semelhantes a peixes, parece quase certo que os ictiossauros não podiam sair da água. No entanto, eles ainda respiravam ar e não tinham guelras, como as baleias modernas.

Os ictiossauros não eram dinossauros, mas representam um grupo separado de vertebrados marinhos.

Como os ictiossauros eram tão especializados e modificados para a vida no oceano, não sabemos realmente qual grupo de vertebrados eram seus parentes mais próximos.

Eles podem ter sido uma ramificação dos diápsides – o grande grupo de vertebrados que inclui dinossauros e pássaros, pterossauros, lagartos e cobras e muitos outros vertebrados.

Por outro lado, alguns sugeriram que os ictiossauros eram descendentes de um parente distante das tartarugas.

Os primeiros ictiossauros apareceram no Triássico.

No Jurássico, os ictiossauros atingiram sua maior diversidade e começaram a declinar.

Os últimos ictiossauros desapareceram no Cretáceo – vários milhões de anos antes dos últimos dinossauros desaparecerem.

O que causou a extinção dos dinossauros não causou a morte dos ictiossauros.

Fonte: Encyclopædia Britannica/https://ift.tt/2WJYarl

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[franzanth]

A study of Saurian morphology: Ichthyosauromorpha (part 1)

Because fish lizards.

Presenting the three early members of Ichthyosauromorpha, a.k.a. almost Ichthyosaurs. As enigmatic as ichtyosaur origins are, Hupehsuchus and Cartorhynchus were relatively small but already fully aquatic.

Utatsusaurus is one of the earliest basal ichthyosaurs, grouped under the name Ichthyopterygia. It likely had a less developed tail than later ichthyosaurs, having only a dorsal fin to propel itself with. This genus shows transitional features between ichthyosaur ancestors and the more derived forms that we will see in the next post.

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[ancientmarinereptiles]

Macgowania janiceps

Art by: Amber, https://www.deviantart.com/transpaleoartist/art/You-were-an-Isle-unto-Thyself-796315508

Name: Macgowania janiceps

First Described: 1999

Described By: Motani

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬Parvipelvia

Paleontologists recovered a fairly complete skull and partial skeletal remains of Macgowania from Canada’s Pardonet Formation. This ichthyosaur was thought to be just another species of Ichthyosaurus, but Motani reexamined the holotype specimen and determined it to be a distinct genus on its own. Macgowania existed during the Late Triassic.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macgowania

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Muiscasaurus catheti

Art by: Daniel Dick

Name: Muiscasaurus catheti

Name Meaning: Muisca lizard

First Described: 2015

Described By: Maxwell et al.,

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬‬Ophthalmosauridae

We have another marine reptile from the Paja Formation in Colombia. Muiscasaurus was a Late Cretaceous ophthalmosaurid, we have uncovered part of its skull, some ribs, and vertebrae. Muiscasaurus had four nostrils, two openings on each side of its snout. Muiscasaurus probably consumed prey that were soft and small.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Muiscasaurus

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Leninia stellans

Art by: Andrey Atuchin, https://www.deviantart.com/olorotitan/art/Leninia-lres2-357215118

Name: Leninia stellans

Name Meaning: Named after Vladimir Lenin

First Described: 2013

Described By: Fischer et al.,

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬‬Ophthalmosauridae, ‬‬Ophthalmosaurinae

Leninia was an Early Cretaceous ophthalmosaurid from Russia. The only thing that was recovered of this animal was its partial skull. Interestingly, its skull didn’t have any teeth as well. Leninia is considered to be a basal ophthalmosaurid. It most likely hunted for prey in deep waters, hence the large eyes as seen by the size of the sclerotic rings that were preserved in its skull.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leninia

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Gulosaurus helmi

Art by: Gabriel Ugueto, https://www.deviantart.com/kana-hebi/art/Gulosaurus-helmi-704120423

Name: Gulosaurus helmi

Name Meaning: ‬Wolverine lizard (Helm’s wolverine lizard)

First Described: 2013

Described By: Cuthbertson, Russell & Anderson

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyopterygia, ‬Grippidia

This basal ichthyosaur was discovered in the Sulphur Mountain Formation in Canada. Gulosaurus is close in relation to another basal ichthyosaur that I have previously covered, Grippia. Both ichthyosaurs are pretty similar to each other as they both were the same in body size, 4.9 feet (1.5 meters) in length. Most of their skeletal anatomy is similar as well, but there are differences that clearly distinguishes both genera. In the past, Gulosaurus was once thought to be a species of Grippia and even later thought to be Parvinatator.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulosaurus

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Keilhauia nui

Art by: Carter Gatewood, https://www.deviantart.com/acrosaurotaurus/art/Keilhauia-nui-671045830

Name: Keilhauia nui

Name Meaning: Keilhau’s one (In honor of the Baltazar Mathias Keilhau)

First Described: 2017

Described By: Delsett et al.,

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬‬Ophthalmosauridae

Once again we have another ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur from the Agardhfjellet Formation in Norway. Keilhauia existed during the Early Cretaceous and was most likely 13 feet (4 meters) in length. We don’t have the skull of this ichthyosaur, but we have fragments of its snout. In addition, paleontologists have recovered the scapula, humerus, coracoid, clavicle, femur, illium, and ischiopubis. The one and only specimen that we have of Keilhauia perished and fossilized in a shallow marine environment as seen by the sediments in the area.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keilhauia

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Malawania anachronus

Art by: Ghedoghedo, CC BY-SA 3.0

Name: Malawania anachronus

Name Meaning: Swimmer out of time

First Described: 2013

Described By: Fischer et al.,

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬Ichthyosauridae

Malawania is interesting, it’s a basal thunnosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous of what is now known as Iraq. It was thought that basal thunnosaur ichthyosaurs were extinct by the Early Jurassic. The species name reflects this fascinating discovery as if Malawania was anachronistic in a way.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malawania

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Hupehsuchus nanchangensis

Art by: Smokeybjb, CC BY-SA 3.0

Name: Hupehsuchus nanchangensis

Name Meaning: ‬Hubei crocodile (Hubei Province in China)

First Described: 1972

Described By: Young and Dong

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, Hupehsuchia, Hupehsuchidae

Remember my post on Eretmorhipis, the weird and strange guy from the Early Triassic who was a part of a clade of marine reptiles that were closely related to ichthyosaurs? Well, we have another member of that clade for today’s entry! Hupehsuchus was also from the Early Triassic and was discovered in China and they too were pretty strange in their own right. They had a long toothless snout, long tail, and their limbs were like paddles, but not fully formed flippers as seen in later ichthyosaurs. Oh and let’s not forget, Hupehsuchus had armor on its back as well. There’s still a debate within the paleontological community on whether Hupehsuchus was even closely related to the ichthyosaurs or not. Some hypothesize that because this guy had extra bones within its hands instead of within its individual fingers, that the difference itself may possibly rule Hupehsuchus out in close relation to ichthyosaurs.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hupehsuchia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hupehsuchus

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Eretmorhipis carrolldongi

Art by: Liam Elward, https://www.deviantart.com/prehistorybyliam/art/Eretmorhipis-783558933

Name: Eretmorhipis carrolldongi

Name Meaning: ‬Oar fan

First Described: 2015

Described By: Chen et al.,

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, Hupehsuchia, Hupehsuchidae

Eretmorhipis was a weird and very strange marine reptile. It had osteoderms on its back, thick ribs, and its digits were fan shaped. Eretmorhipis is actually a part of Hupehsuchia, which are pretty much reptiles that are close in relation to ichthyosaurs. Anyways, Eretmorhipis existed during the Early Triassic and was found in China’s Jialingjiang Formation. We’ve found specimens in the past that consisted of post-cranial material, but most recently in 2018, paleontologists found a specimen that included the skull and mostly complete post-cranial remains of this odd aquatic creature.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eretmorhipis

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Maiaspondylus lindoei

By: Maxwell and Caldwell, 2006

Name: Maiaspondylus lindoei

Name Meaning: Caring mother vertebra

First Described: 2006

Described By: Maxwell and Caldwell

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬‬Ophthalmosauridae,‭ ‬Platypterygiinae

Maiaspondylus was once thought to be Platypterygius, but that’s not the case because a recent study has shown that the two genera are indeed separate. Maiaspondylus swam the Early Cretaceous seas of what is now known as the Northwest Territories of Canada. One specimen was discovered with embryos inside of it. This is once again another example that supports that ichthyosaurs gave birth to live young.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maiaspondylus

[ancientmarinereptiles]

Chacaicosaurus cayi

Art by: Ghedoghedo - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0

Name: Chacaicosaurus cayi

Name Meaning: Chacaico lizard

First Described: 1994

Described By: Marta S. Fernández

Classification: Chordata, Tetrapoda, Reptilia, ‬Ichthyosauria,‭ ‬‬Thunnosauria

Chacaicosaurus lived during the Middle Jurassic in what is now known as Argentina. Paleontologists found this ichthyosaur from the Los Molles Formation, just like another ichthyosaur that I previously covered, Mollesaurus. Originally, Chacaicosaurus was thought to be a part of the Stenopterygiidae family, but a recent study has found it to be actually a part of the Thunnosauria clade, instead.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chacaicosaurus