Prehistoric Models: Ichthyosaurs
Ichthyosaurs meaning “fish lizard“, are group of marine reptiles that first appeared in the fossil record during the Triassic Period and were extinct by the begining of the late Cretaceous period. Ichthyosaurs belong to the order known as Ichthyosauria or Ichthyopterygia meaning “fish flippers” named in1842 by Sir Richard Owen.
Kingdom: Animalia – Phylum: Chordata – Superclass: Tetrapoda – Class: Reptilia – Clade: Diapsida – Clade: Sauropsida – Clade: Ichthyosauria
(Ichthyosaurs)
Early Triassic to Late Cretaceous
Genus: Ichthyosaurus”fish lizard“
Genus pronounced: Ick-thee-oh-sore-us
Species: I. communis (type), I. anningae, I. breviceps, I. conybeari, I. intermedius, I. larkini, I. somersetensis
Named by: William Daniel Conybeare & Henry De la Beche - 1821
Classification: Family: Ichthyosauridae
Time: Early Jurassic (Hettangian to Pliensbachian)
Locality: Europe: Belgium, England, Germany and Switzerland
Size: 2 to 3.3 meters long
Diet: Piscivore
Genus: Ichthyosaurus”fish lizard“
Genus pronounced: Ick-thee-oh-sore-us
Species: I. communis (type), I. anningae, I. breviceps, I. conybeari, I. intermedius, I. larkini, I. somersetensis
Named by: William Daniel Conybeare & Henry De la Beche - 1821
Classification: Family: Ichthyosauridae
Time: Early Jurassic (Hettangian to Pliensbachian)
Locality: Europe: Belgium, England, Germany and Switzerland
Size: 2 to 3.3 meters long
Diet: Piscivore
Genus: Ichthyosaurus”fish lizard“
Genus pronounced: Ick-thee-oh-sore-us
Species: I. communis (type), I. anningae, I. breviceps, I. conybeari, I. intermedius, I. larkini, I. somersetensis
Named by: William Daniel Conybeare & Henry De la Beche - 1821
Classification: Family: Ichthyosauridae
Time: Early Jurassic (Hettangian to Pliensbachian)
Locality: Europe: Belgium, England, Germany and Switzerland
Size: 2 to 3.3 meters long
Diet: Piscivore
Genus: Temnodontosaurus “cutting-toothed lizard“
Genus pronounced: Tem-noe-don-toe-sore-us
Species: T. platyodon (type), T. eurycephalus, T. nuertingensis, T. trigonodon, T. acutirostris.
Named by: Richard Lydekker – 1889
Classification: Family: Temnodontosauridae
Time: Early Jurassic (Hettangian to Toarcian)
Locality: England: British Isles and Germany
Size: 12 meters long
Diet: Cephalopods (ammonites)
