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Mesosaurus (meaning "middle lizard") is an extinct genus of reptile from the Early Permian of southern Africa and South America. Along with it, the genera Brazilosaurus and Stereosternum , it is a member of the family Mesosauridae and the order Mesosauria .
A study on the vertebral column torso and tail proportions of Mesosaurus suggests that, while juveniles may have been fully aquatic, adults might have spent some time on land; this is further vindicated by the rarity of adult animals in aquatic settings and some faeces showing signs of drying fracture. However, how terrestrial they were is ...
Another characteristic of Stereosternum is the length of the tail and the amount of caudal vertebrae. As counted by Osborn, there are about 60-64 caudal vertebrae , which is very predictable for an aquatic predator and these adaptations helped individuals to push and swim gracefully in the water. [ 8 ]
The tail structure of Mosasaurus is similar to relatives like Prognathodon, in which soft tissue evidence for a two-lobed tail is known. [74] The tail vertebrae gradually shorten around the center of the tail and lengthen behind the center, suggesting rigidness around the tail center and excellent flexibility behind it.
The largest mosasaur currently on public display is Bruce, a 65-70%-complete specimen of Tylosaurus pembinensis dating from the late Cretaceous Period, approximately 80 million years ago, and measuring 13.05 m (42.815 ft) from nose tip to tail tip.
Reconstructed skeleton of M. hoffmannii at the Maastricht Natural History Museum. The research history of Mosasaurus is extensive given its complicated taxonomic and cultural histories, with the earliest recorded fossil find dating back 1764 in a chalk quarry located near Maastricht, Netherlands.
Lepidosauromorphs are distinguishable from archosauromorphs (reptiles closer to archosaurs) by their primitive sprawling gait (allowing for the same sinusoidal trunk and tail movement seen in fish), the sliding "joint" between the coracoids and the sternum (for a longer stride), and their pleurodont dentition.
Mosasauria is a clade of aquatic and semiaquatic squamates that lived during the Cretaceous period. Fossils belonging to the group have been found in all continents around the world.