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Plesiosaurus macrocephalus

Reptilia - Plesiosauria

Taxonomy
Plesiosaurus macrocephalus was named by Owen (1840). Its type specimen is BMNH R1336, a skeleton (almost complete juvenile skeleton), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is Lyme Regis (Higgins/Anning collection), which is in a Sinemurian marine horizon in the United Kingdom.

It was recombined as Rhomaleosaurus macrocephalus by Persson (1963).

Sister species lacking formal opinion data
P. morinicus

Synonyms
Synonymy list
YearName and author
1840Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Owen pp. 62-69
1840Plesiosaurus brachycephalus Owen p. 69
1840Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Owen p. 69
1865Plesiosaurus brachycephalus Seeley p. 50
1865Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Seeley p. 50
1876Plesiosaurus brachycephalus Tate and Blake p. 252
1881Plesiosaurus brachycephalus Sollas pp. 476-480 figs. 14, pl. 14, fig. 2
1889Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Lydekker p. 266
1928Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Perrier p. 3090
1934Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Swinton p. 57
1948Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Swinton pp. 346-348
1960Plesiosaurus macrocephalus Delair pp. 54-55
1963Rhomaleosaurus macrocephalus Persson p. 21

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RankNameAuthor
kingdomAnimalia()
—Bilateria
—EubilateriaAx 1987
—Deuterostomia
phylumChordataHaeckel 1874
subphylumVertebrata
superclassGnathostomata
—Osteichthyes()
subclassSarcopterygii()
subclassDipnotetrapodomorpha(Nelson 2006)
subclassTetrapodomorpha()
—Tetrapoda
—Reptiliomorpha
—Anthracosauria
RankNameAuthor
subclassAmphibiosauriaKuhn 1967
—Cotylosauria()
—Amniota
—Sauropsida
classReptilia
subclassEureptilia()
—Romeriida
—Diapsida()
suborderSauropterygia
orderPlesiosauriade Blainville 1835
superfamilyPlesiosauroideaWelles 1943
genusPlesiosaurus
speciesmacrocephalus

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

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Invalid names: Plesiosaurus brachycephalus Owen 1840 [synonym]
Diagnosis
No diagnoses are available
Measurements
No measurements are available
Composition: hydroxyapatiteo
Environment: marineo
Locomotion: actively mobileo
Life habit: aquatico
Depth habitat: surfaceo
Diet: carnivoreo
Reproduction: viviparouso
Created: 2009-07-20 06:05:48
Modified: 2011-08-12 01:58:15
Source: o = order
Reference: Kiessling 2004

Age range: Early/Lower Sinemurian or 196.50000 to 189.60000 Ma

Collections (3 total)


Time interval Ma Country or state Original ID and collection number
Early/Lower Hettangian - Early/Lower Pliensbachian201.3 - 183.0United Kingdom (England) Plesiosaurus macrocephalus (118938)
Hettangian - Early/Lower Pliensbachian201.3 - 183.0United Kingdom (England) Plesiosaurus brachycephalus (119084)
Early/Lower Sinemurian196.5 - 189.6United Kingdom Plesiosaurus macrocephalus (type locality: 139854)