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Elasmosaurus differed from all other plesiosaurs by having 72 neck vertebrae; more may have been present but were later lost to erosion or after excavation. Only Albertonectes had more neck vertebrae, 76, and the two are the only plesiosaurs with a count higher than 70; more than 60 vertebrae is very derived (or "advanced") for plesiosaurs.
Plesiosaurus (Greek: πλησίος (plesios), near to + σαῦρος (sauros), lizard) is a genus of extinct, large marine sauropterygian reptile that lived during the Early Jurassic. It is known by nearly complete skeletons from the Lias of England.
Although the placement of Elasmosaurus in the Elasmosauridae remained uncontroversial, opinions on the relationships of the family became variable over subsequent decades. Williston created a revised taxonomy of plesiosaurs in a monograph on the osteology of reptiles (published posthumously in 1925).
The Plesiosauria [a] [4] or plesiosaurs are an order or clade of extinct Mesozoic marine reptiles, belonging to the Sauropterygia. Plesiosaurs first appeared in the latest Triassic Period , possibly in the Rhaetian stage, about 203 million years ago. [ 5 ]
The discovery of a well-preserved fossil is helping researchers learn more about an iconic Jurassic-period species. The plesiosaur, considered a successful marine predatory ancient species, may ...
Plesioelasmosaurus is an extinct genus of elasmosaurid plesiosaur from the Late Cretaceous (middle Cenomanian) Greenhorn Limestone of Kansas, United States. The genus contains a single species, P. walkeri, known from a partial skeleton. [1]
José P. O’Gorman, Leonardo Salgado, Eduardo B. Olivero and Sergio A. Marenssi (2015). "Vegasaurus molyi, gen. et sp. nov. (Plesiosauria, Elasmosauridae), from the Cape Lamb Member (lower Maastrichtian) of the Snow Hill Island Formation, Vega Island, Antarctica, and remarks on Wedellian Elasmosauridae". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology.
This genus of plesiosaur lived in North America, approximately 95 million years ago - this places it during the Cenomanian stage. Its closest relative is Elasmosaurus, and both belong to the family Elasmosauridae. There are six specimens of varying states of preservation on display at various museums in the United States.