Ichthyosaurus

Ichthyosaurus
Temporal range: Early Jurassic, Hettangian–Pliensbachian Possible Late Triassic (Rhaetian) record, but yet to be confirmed[1]
Fossil specimen of I. somersetensis at Natural History Museum, London (NHMUK PV OR 2013)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Reptilia
Order: †Ichthyosauria
Family: †Ichthyosauridae
Genus: †Ichthyosaurus
De la Beche & Conybeare, 1821
Type species
†Ichthyosaurus communis
De la Beche & Conybeare, 1822
Other species
  • †I. breviceps Owen, 1881
  • †I. conybeari Lydekker, 1888
  • †I. anningae Lomax & Massare, 2015
  • †I. larkini Lomax & Massare, 2017[2]
  • †I. somersetensis Lomax & Massare, 2017[2]

Ichthyosaurus (derived from Greek ἰχθύς (ichthys) meaning 'fish' and σαῦρος (sauros) meaning 'lizard') is a genus of ichthyosaurs from the Early Jurassic (Hettangian - Pliensbachian[3]) of Europe (Belgium, England, Germany and Portugal[4]). Some specimens of the ichthyosaurid Protoichthyosaurus from England and Switzerland have been erroneously referred to this genus in the past.[5][6] It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, as it is the type genus of the order Ichthyosauria.[7][8]

  1. ^ Lomax, D.R. (2019). "A revision of Ichthyosaurus (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria)" (PDF). The University of Manchester: Manchester eScholar. pp. 1–414. S2CID 210305170.
  2. ^ a b Dean R. Lomax; Judy A. Massare (2017). "Two new species of Ichthyosaurus from the lowermost Jurassic (Hettangian) of Somerset, England". Papers in Palaeontology. 3 (1): 1–20. Bibcode:2017PPal....3....1L. doi:10.1002/spp2.1065. S2CID 89567182.
  3. ^ Dean R. Lomax (2010). "An Ichthyosaurus (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria) with gastric contents from Charmouth, England: First report of the genus from the Pliensbachian". Paludicola. 8 (1): 22–36.
  4. ^ Sousa, João; Mateus, Octávio (9 September 2021). "The southernmost occurrence of Ichthyosaurus from the Sinemurian of Portugal". Fossil Record. 24 (2): 287–294. Bibcode:2021FossR..24..287S. doi:10.5194/fr-24-287-2021. hdl:10362/131844. ISSN 2193-0066. S2CID 239059696.
  5. ^ Lomax, D. R.; Porro, L. B.; Larkin, N. R. (2019). "Descriptive anatomy of the largest known specimen of Protoichthyosaurus prostaxalis (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) including computed tomography and digital reconstruction of a three-dimensional skull". PeerJ. 7 (e6112): e6112. doi:10.7717/peerj.6112. PMC 6329338. PMID 30643690.
  6. ^ Klug, C.; Sivgin, T.; Miedema, F.; Scheffold, B.; Reisdorf, A.G.; Stössel, I.; Maxwell, E.E.; Scheyer, T.M. (2024). "Swiss ichthyosaurs: a review". Swiss Journal of Palaeontology. 143. 31. doi:10.1186/s13358-024-00327-4. PMC 11366730.
  7. ^ Maisch MW, Matzke AT. 2000. The Ichthyosauria. Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie) 298: 1-159
  8. ^ McGowan C, Motani R. 2003. Ichthyopterygia. – In: Sues, H.-D. (ed.): Handbook of Paleoherpetology, Part 8, Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, 175 pp., 101 figs., 19 plts; München