''Moanasaurus'' (From

Māori Māori or Maori can refer to: Relating to the Māori people * Māori people of New Zealand, or members of that group * Māori language, the language of the Māori people of New Zealand * Māori culture * Cook Islanders, the Māori people of the Co ...

''moana'' "sea" and Greek ''sauros'' "lizard"; meaning "Sea Lizard") was a genus of

mosasaur Mosasaurs (from Latin ''Mosa'' meaning the 'Meuse', and Ancient Greek, Greek ' meaning 'lizard') are an extinct group of large aquatic reptiles within the family Mosasauridae that lived during the Late Cretaceous. Their first fossil remains wer ...

from the

Late Cretaceous The Late Cretaceous (100.5–66 Ma) is the more recent of two epochs into which the Cretaceous Period is divided in the geologic time scale. Rock strata from this epoch form the Upper Cretaceous Series. The Cretaceous is named after ''cre ...

period. Its fossil remains have been discovered in the

North Island The North Island ( , 'the fish of Māui', historically New Ulster) is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but less populous South Island by Cook Strait. With an area of , it is the List ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. ''Moanasaurus'' was a very large mosasaurine known originally from holotype CD43, a disarticulated skull, vertebrae, ribs and flipper bones. The skull measures in length, which shows that ''Moanasaurus'' was one of the largest in the subfamily of

Mosasaurinae The Mosasaurinae are a subfamily of mosasaurs, a diverse group of Late Cretaceous marine Squamata, squamates. Members of the subfamily are informally and collectively known as "mosasaurines" and their fossils have been recovered from every contin ...

. Researchers argue that some Antarctic ''

Mosasaurus ''Mosasaurus'' (; "lizard of the Meuse (river), Meuse River") is the type genus (defining example) of the mosasaurs, an extinct group of aquatic Squamata, squamate reptiles. It lived from about 82 to 66 million years ago during the Campanian an ...

'' remains (including a "large, fragmentary skull") may be attributed to this genus. Two additional species have been named, "

Moanasaurus hobetsuensis This list of informally named Mesozoic reptiles is a listing of prehistoric reptiles from the Mesozoic era (excluding dinosaurs) that have never been given formally published scientific names. This list only includes names that were not properly ...

" (originally named ''Mosasaurus hobetsuensis'') and "

Moanasaurus longirostris This list of informally named Mesozoic reptiles is a listing of prehistoric reptiles from the Mesozoic era (excluding dinosaurs) that have never been given formally published scientific names. This list only includes names that were not properly ...

", but these are

nomina nuda Nomen may refer to: *Nomen gentilicium, the middle part of Ancient Roman names ** ''Nomen est omen'', a Latin quote about nominative determinism *Nomen (ancient Egypt), the personal name of Ancient Egyptian pharaohs *Jaume Nomen (born 1960), Catal ...

because they were named in a PhD thesis. The same thesis argued that ''Mosasaurus flemingi'' is a

junior synonym In taxonomy, the scientific classification of living organisms, a synonym is an alternative scientific name for the accepted scientific name of a taxon. The botanical and zoological codes of nomenclature treat the concept of synonymy differently. ...

of ''Moanasaurus mangahouangae''.

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External links

Oceans of Kansas
Mosasaurines Mosasaurs of Oceania Fossils of New Zealand Fossil taxa described in 1980 Taxa named by Joan Wiffen Extinct animals of New Zealand {{paleo-lizard-stub

See also

References

External links