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''Californosaurus'' ('California lizard') is an extinct
The long-snouted head is small in comparison with the rest of the body, as in basal ichthyosaurs such as ''
Palaeos Vertebrates
Late Triassic ichthyosaurs of North America Fauna of California Paleontology in California Triassic California Late Triassic first appearances Late Triassic extinctions Fossil taxa described in 1934 Ichthyosauromorph genera {{triassic-reptile-stub
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
of ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaurs (Ancient Greek for "fish lizard" – and ) are large extinct marine reptiles. Ichthyosaurs belong to the order known as Ichthyosauria or Ichthyopterygia ('fish flippers' – a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1842, altho ...
, an extinct marine reptile, from the Lower Hosselkus Limestone
The Hosselkus Limestone is an Upper Triassic fossiliferous marine micritic limestone formation that outcrops in Plumas and Shasta Counties, California. It is known for its invertebrate fauna, most notably the many species of shelled cephalopod ...
(Carnian
The Carnian (less commonly, Karnian) is the lowermost stage of the Upper Triassic Series (or earliest age of the Late Triassic Epoch). It lasted from 237 to 227 million years ago (Ma). The Carnian is preceded by the Ladinian and is followed by t ...
, Late Triassic
The Late Triassic is the third and final epoch (geology), epoch of the Triassic geologic time scale, Period in the geologic time scale, spanning the time between annum, Ma and Ma (million years ago). It is preceded by the Middle Triassic Epoch ...
) of California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
.
Taxonomy
Merriam (1902) described it as a new species of ''Shastasaurus
''Shastasaurus'' ("Mount Shasta lizard") is a very large extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the middle and late Triassic, and is the largest known marine reptile.Hilton, Richard P., ''Dinosaurs and Other Mesozoic Animals of California'', Universit ...
'', ''S. perrini''. He later recognized the species as generically distinct from the ''Shastasaurus'' type species, erecting '' Delphinosaurus'' for ''S. perrini''. However, ''Delphinosaurus'' had been previously used for an ophthalmosaurid from Albian-Cenomanian deposits in European Russia, and Kuhn (1934) provided the generic replacement name ''Californosaurus''. Merriam (1938) independently erected ''Perrinosaurus'' to replace ''Delphinosaurus'', but this is a junior objective synonym.
Description
The long-snouted head is small in comparison with the rest of the body, as in basal ichthyosaurs such as ''Mixosaurus
''Mixosaurus'' is an extinct genus of Middle Triassic ( Anisian to Ladinian, about 250-240 Mya) ichthyosaur. Its fossils have been found near the Italy– Switzerland border and in South China.
The genus was named in 1887 by George H. Bau ...
'' and ''Cymbospondylus
''Cymbospondylus'' (a Greek word meaning "boat vertebrae") was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the early and middle Triassic period (249-237 million years ago). Previously, the genus was classified as a shastasaurid, but more rec ...
''. The tail is sharply turned downwards, in common with more advanced ichthyosaurs, with a small vertical fluke. It may have had a small dorsal fin. There is a small number of pre-sacral vertebrae (45 or 50). The phalanges (digit bones) are circular and widely spaced, giving the flipper a round appearance. It was long.
Biology
It fed on fish and other small marine creatures. Like other ichthyosaurs it probably never ventured onto dry land, and gave birth in the water.See also
* List of ichthyosaurs *Timeline of ichthyosaur research
This timeline of ichthyosaur research is a chronological listing of events in the history of paleontology focused on the ichthyosauromorphs, a group of secondarily aquatic marine reptiles whose later members superficially resembled dolphins, shar ...
References
*M. W. Maisch. 2010. Phylogeny, systematics, and origin of the Ichthyosauria - the state of the art. ''Palaeodiversity'' 3:151-214External links
Palaeos Vertebrates
Late Triassic ichthyosaurs of North America Fauna of California Paleontology in California Triassic California Late Triassic first appearances Late Triassic extinctions Fossil taxa described in 1934 Ichthyosauromorph genera {{triassic-reptile-stub