Strophodus was a 10 foot long hybodont shark which specialized in eating shellfish. It appeared during the early Jurassic Period and went extinct during the early Cretaceous Period, making it one of the longest-lived shark genera in the fossil record…. Read More ›
Europe
March 14 – The Equirria Martia: The Chariot Race of Mars
A Roman Chariot Race, by Alexander von Wagner (1882). Manchester City Art Galleries. Manchester, UK. In ancient Rome, March 14 was the date for the Equirria Martia, a chariot race dedicated to the ancient Roman war god Mars. The Equirria… Read More ›
Cimoliopterus
Introduction Cimoliopterus was pterosaur with a supposed wingspan of 16 feet or thereabouts, which inhabited Europe and North America during the middle of the Cretaceous Period approximately 100-94 million years ago. There are presently two species of this pterosaur genus:… Read More ›
Coloborhynchus
Coloborhynchus was a species of pterosaur which lived in England (and possibly elsewhere) during the early Cretaceous Period approximately 140 million years ago. The first specimen of this animal was found in the 1800s within the Hastings Beds of the… Read More ›
Peloneustes
Peloneustes was a 13 foot long pliosaur which swam in the sea around England during the middle of the Jurassic Period 165 million years ago. The first specimen of this animal was found near the city of Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, England… Read More ›
Cricosaurus
Cricosaurus was a genus of 5-10 foot long marine crocodylomorphs which swam in the shallow seas around Mexico, Argentina, and Germany from the late Jurassic Period to the early Cretaceous Period, approximately 152-132 million years ago. Cricosarus belonged to a… Read More ›
Platypterygius
Platypterygius, meaning “flat fin”, was a genus of ichthyosaur which lived during the middle of the Cretaceous Period approximately 115-95 million years ago. It was one of the last ichthyosaurs to exist before the entire group went extinct. Traditionally treated… Read More ›
Cryptoclidus
Cryptoclidus was a 15 foot long plesiosaur which inhabited the prehistoric Tethys Sea, which once covered much of Europe, during the middle of the Jurassic Period 165-160 million years ago. Fossils of Cryptoclidus have been found within southern England and… Read More ›
Leptostyrax
Leptostyrax was a genus of prehistoric sand tiger shark measuring an impressive 20 feet long which lived in the oceans around North America, Europe, Africa, and Australia during the Cretaceous Period approximately 125-75 million years ago. Leptostyrax has a long… Read More ›
Dakosaurus
There were numerous kinds of marine reptiles which swam in the oceans during the Mesozoic Era, including the ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs, and mosasaurs. Less well known are the marine crocodilians, or more accurately, crocodylomorphs. These animals are known as the thalattosuchians,… Read More ›
DINOSAURS AND BARBARIANS 