Pliosaurus

Pliosaurus
Temporal range: Late Jurassic, 155.7–147 Ma
P. kevani holotype skull
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Superorder: †Sauropterygia
Order: †Plesiosauria
Family: †Pliosauridae
Clade: †Thalassophonea
Genus: †Pliosaurus
Owen, 1842
Type species
†Pliosaurus brachydeirus
Owen, 1842
Species[1][2]
  • †P. brachydeirus
    (Owen, 1841)
  • †P. carpenteri
    Benson et al., 2013
  • †P. funkei
    Knutsen et al., 2012
  • †P. kevani
    Benson et al., 2013
  • †P. rossicus
    Novozhilov, 1948
  • †P. westburyensis
    Benson et al., 2013
Species pending reassessment
    • †P. brachyspondylus
      (Owen, 1839)
    • †P. macromerus
      (Philips, 1871)
Species pending ICZN petition
    • †P. patagonicus
      Gasparini & O'Gorman, 2014
    • †P. almanzaensis
      Gasparini, Spalleti & O'Gorman, 2018
Synonyms
  • Stretosaurus
    Tarlo, 1960
  • Spondylosaurus
    Fischer, 1845
  • Plesiosaurus giganteus
    Conybeare, 1824
  • Plesiosaurus recentior
    Parkinson, 1822
  • Liopleurodon rossicus
    (Novozhilov, 1948)

Pliosaurus (meaning 'more lizard') is an extinct genus of thalassophonean pliosaurid known from the Late Jurassic (Kimmeridgian and Tithonian stages) of Europe and South America.[3] Most European species of Pliosaurus measured around 8 metres (26 ft) long and weighed about 5 metric tons (5.5 short tons), but P. rossicus and P. funkei would have been one of the largest plesiosaurs of all time, exceeding 10 metres (33 ft) in length.[4][5][6] This genus has contained many species in the past but recent reviews found only six (P. brachydeirus (type species), P. carpenteri, P. funkei, P. kevani, P. rossicus and P. westburyensis) to be valid, while the validity of two additional species awaits a petition to the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Currently, P. brachyspondylus and P. macromerus are considered dubious, while P. portentificus is considered undiagnostic.[1][2][7][5][8] Species of this genus are differentiated from other pliosaurids based on seven autapomorphies, including teeth that are triangular in cross section.[1][2] Their diet would have included fish, cephalopods, and marine reptiles.

  1. ^ a b c Benson, R. B. J.; Evans, M.; Smith, A. S.; Sassoon, J.; Moore-Faye, S.; Ketchum, H. F.; Forrest, R. (2013). Butler, Richard J (ed.). "A Giant Pliosaurid Skull from the Late Jurassic of England". PLOS ONE. 8 (5): e65989. Bibcode:2013PLoSO...865989B. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0065989. PMC 3669260. PMID 23741520.
  2. ^ a b c Espen M. Knutsen (2012). "A taxonomic revision of the genus Pliosaurus (Owen, 1841a) Owen, 1841b". Norwegian Journal of Geology. 92 (2–3): 259–276. ISSN 0029-196X. Low resolution pdf Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine High resolution pdf Archived 2013-12-24 at the Wayback Machine
  3. ^ Gasparini, Z.; O'Gorman, J. (2014). "A new species of Pliosaurus (Sauropterygia, Plesiosauria) from the Upper Jurassic of northwestern Patagonia, Argentina". Ameghiniana. 51 (4): 269–283. doi:10.5710/amgh.03.04.2014.2225. hdl:11336/9372. S2CID 130194647.
  4. ^ Cite error: The named reference G.S.Paul2022 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  5. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference P.funkei was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference M23 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Naish, Darren (2012). Planet Dinosaur: The Next Generation of Killer Dinosaurs. Firefly Books. p. 134. ISBN 978-1-77085-049-1.
  8. ^ Noè, L. F.; Smith, D. T. J.; Walton, D. I. (2004). "A new species of Kimmeridgian pliosaur (Reptilia; Sauropterygia) and its bearing on the nomenclature of Liopleurodon macromerus". Proceedings of the Geologists' Association. 115 (1): 13–24. Bibcode:2004PrGA..115...13N. doi:10.1016/S0016-7878(04)80031-2.