Macroplata

Macroplata
Temporal range: 199–195 Ma

Early Jurassic

Macroplata tenuiceps from the Early Jurassic of Europe
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Order: Plesiosauria[1]
Genus: Macroplata
Species: M. tenuiceps
Binomial name
Macroplata tenuiceps
Swinton, 1930

Macroplata (meaning "big plate") is an extinct genus of Early Jurassic basal plesiosaur which grew up to 4.5 metres (15 ft) in length. Like other plesiosaurs, Macroplata probably lived on a diet of fish, using its sharp needle-like teeth to catch prey. Its shoulder bones were fairly large, indicating a powerful forward stroke for fast swimming. Macroplata also had a relatively long neck, twice the length of the skull, in contrast to pliosaurs.[2]

Plesiosaurus longirostris was once assigned to this genus, but it has been re-assigned to Hauffiosaurus, as H. longirostris.[3]

See also

References

  1. Ketchum HF, Benson RBJ. Global interrelationships of Plesiosauria (Reptilia, Sauropterygia) and the pivotal role of taxon sampling in determining the outcome of phylogenetic analyses. Biological Reviews
  2. Palmer, D., ed. (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 76. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
  3. R. B. J. Benson, H. F. Ketchum, L. F. Noe and M. Gomez-Perez. 2011. "New information on Hauffiosaurus (Reptilia, Plesiosauria) based on a new species from the Alum Shale Member (Lower Toarcian: Lower Jurassic) of Yorkshire, UK". Palaeontology 54(3):547-571.
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