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Liopleurodon

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Although the Liopleurodon was a giant animal, it was not as big as the Australian giant Kronosaurus, which had a maximum length of 36 feet. Furthermore, in 1999, more people learned about this extinct animal when it was featured in the BBC series Walking With Dinosaurs. They also believe that they weighed 2200-3700 pounds, sometimes more than that, making this species one of the world’s biggest and strongest predatory animals. More bones were recovered in other areas in France, and although they were initially categorized under the genus Poikilopleuron, Sauvage finally classified them under Liopleurodon. Halstead knew the validity of ‘ Stretosaurus‘ was questionable much earlier than his formal declaration and reallocation of the genus to Liopleurodon in 1989. As early as 1977, in collaboration with Robinson, he had re-evaluated the diagnostic scapula of ‘ Stretosaurus‘ as an ilium (Robinson, 1977), so the genus ‘Stretosaurus’was already called into question by then. The last publication I can find where Tarlo/Halstead refers to ‘Stretosaurus’ as a valid taxon is in 1971 (Halstead, 1971). So, perhaps he (and Robinson?) came to the conclusion that ‘ Stretosaurus‘ was Liopleurodon sometime between 1971 and 1977. If so, and if the reconstruction was partly based on the ‘Stretham Pliosaur’, this could explain Robinson (1975) attributing the reconstruction to Liopleurodon.

We know Halstead attributed the reconstruction to Liopleurodon in 1982 (Halstead 1982), so we can be reasonably confident the reconstruction was based on material regarded by him as Liopleurodon at that time, which would have included the lectotype of ‘ Stretosaurus‘. It would also make sense for Tarlo to use the ‘Stretham Pliosaur’ specimen in the Newman & Tarlo reconstruction for two other reasons. First, he described and was intimately familiar with it (Tarlo, 1957, 1959, 1960), and second, in Tarlo’s words, “The Streatham specimen is one of the most important Pliosaur[sic] skeletons to have come out of the Kimeridge [sic][and]…most of the post-cranial skeleton can be described” (Tarlo 1959, p. 41). And, of course, the specimen certainly fulfils the criterion of “other giant pliosaur remains” as stipulated by Newman and Tarlo. Due to their massive size and hunting skills, it is hard to believe that Liopleurodon had any natural enemies that could hunt them for food except for other marine reptiles in their clade. Although the initial fossil discoveries were centered around dinosaurs, other creatures were soon discovered, all of which gave researchers an insight into the prehistoric era. McHenry, C. R. 2009. Devourer of Gods: the palaeoecology of the Cretaceous pliosaur Kronosaurus queenslandicus. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Newcastle.These flippers were primarily used for maneuvering and steering in the water, making them great swimmers, regardless of their vast size. Over the years, people have tried to draw or design the Liopleurodon differently, some as a two-dimensional image, others as three-dimensional toys and sculptures. Conclusion Otherwise called “smooth-sided tooth,” this now-extinct reptile was an apex predator that roamed the oceans between the Middle Jurassic and Late Jurassic periods. The Jurassic period is popularly called the age of the dinosaurs because of how prevalent these animals were at that time. Noè, L. F. 2001. A taxonomic and functional study of the Callovian (Middle Jurassic) Pliosauroidea (Reptilia, Sauropterygia). Unpublished PhD thesis, University of Derby.

I agree with McHenry that the reconstruction may have been based on the ‘Stewartby Pliosaur’ supplemented with information from other pliosaurs, possibly the lectotype of ‘ Stretosaurus’. But it is misleading to call the reconstruction ‘ Stretosaurus‘, especially since significant portions of the Newman & Tarlo reconstruction are implicitly based on Liopleurodon ferox (The ‘Stewartby Pliosaur’). To my eye the hind limb in the reconstruction does resemble the ‘Stewartby Pliosaur’ (from what is visible in the photograph) more than the ‘Stretham Pliosaur’. A PLIOSAUR ( LIOPLEURODON) Mounted skeleton of Liopleurodon ferox in the Tübingen Museum, Germany (from Martill and Naish, 2000). According to sources, the Liopleurodon gave birth to one offspring at a time, and they were likely the size of a baby whale. Knutsen, E. M. 2012. A taxonomic revision of the genus Pliosaurus (Owen, 1841a) Owen, 1841b. Norwegian Journal of Geology, 92, 259–276.

Robinson, J. A. 1977. Intracorporal force transmission in plesiosaurs. Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie un Paläontologie – Abhandlungen, 153, 86–128. Ellis, R. 2003. Sea dragons – predators of the prehistoric oceans. University Press of Kansas, 313 pp.

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