List of ichthyosaurs
Encyclopedia
This list of ichthyosaurs is a comprehensive listing of all genera
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 that have ever been included in the order Ichthyosauria or the parent clade Ichthyopterygia
Ichthyopterygia
Ichthyopterygia was a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1840 to designate the Jurassic ichthyosaurs that were known at the time, but the term is now used more often for both true Ichthyosauria and their more primitive early and middle Triassic ancestors.Basal ichthyopterygians were...

, excluding purely vernacular terms. The list includes all commonly accepted genera, but also genera that are now considered invalid, doubtful (nomen dubium
Nomen dubium
In zoological nomenclature, a nomen dubium is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application...

), or were not formally published (nomen nudum
Nomen nudum
The phrase nomen nudum is a Latin term, meaning "naked name", used in taxonomy...

), as well as junior synonyms of more established names, and genera that are no longer considered ichthyopterygian. Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygians shall be noted as such.

Scope and terminology

There is no official, canonical list of ichthyosaur genera but one of the most thorough attempts can be found at the "Ichthyosauromorpha" section of Mikko Haaramo's Phylogeny Archive.

Naming conventions and terminology follow the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature
International Code of Zoological Nomenclature
The International Code of Zoological Nomenclature is a widely accepted convention in zoology that rules the formal scientific naming of organisms treated as animals...

. Technical terms used include:
  • Junior synonym: A name which describes the same taxon as a previously published name. If two or more genera are formally designated and the type specimens are later assigned to the same genus, the first to be published (in chronological order) is the senior synonym, and all other instances are junior synonyms. Senior synonyms are generally used, except by special decision of the ICZN, but junior synonyms cannot be used again, even if deprecated. Junior synonymy is often subjective, unless the genera described were both based on the same type specimen.
  • Nomen nudum
    Nomen nudum
    The phrase nomen nudum is a Latin term, meaning "naked name", used in taxonomy...

    (Latin for "naked name"): A name that has appeared in print but has not yet been formally published by the standards of the ICZN. Nomina nuda (the plural form) are invalid, and are therefore not italicized as a proper generic name would be. If the name is later formally published, that name is no longer a nomen nudum and will be italicized on this list. Often, the formally published name will differ from any nomina nuda that describe the same specimen. In this case, these nomina nuda will be deleted from this list in favor of the published name.
  • Preoccupied name: A name that is formally published, but which has already been used for another taxon. This second use is invalid (as are all subsequent uses) and the name must be replaced. As preoccupied names are not valid generic names, they will also go unitalicized on this list.
  • Nomen dubium
    Nomen dubium
    In zoological nomenclature, a nomen dubium is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application...

    (Latin for "dubious name"): A name describing a fossil with no unique diagnostic features. As this can be an extremely subjective and controversial designation, this term is not used on this list.

The List

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Genus Authors Year Status Age Location Notes

Actiosaurus
Actiosaurus
Actiosaurus is an extinct genus of reptile first described by Henri Sauvage in 1883. Little is known of it, and it is considered a nomen dubium. Originally described as a dinosaur, it is now widely considered to be an ichthyosaur. The type species is A. gaudryi .-External links:*....


Sauvage

1883
1883 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:-New taxa:...


Disputed.
Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...


Aegirosaurus
Aegirosaurus
Aegirosaurus is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous of Europe.-Discovery and species:...


Bardet

Fernández

2000
2000 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named placoderms:-Amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr...


Valid.

uJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

A 2 meter long ophthalmosaurid whose remains were discovered in the Solnhofen limestone
Solnhofen limestone
The Solnhofen Plattenkalk is a Jurassic Konservat-Lagerstätte that preserves a rare assemblage of fossilized organisms, including highly detailed imprints of soft bodied organisms such as sea jellies...

 and mistaken for a new Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe . It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, with the Order Ichthyosauria being named after it...

 species. In 2000
2000 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named placoderms:-Amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr...

 scientists concluded that the fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

 material should be assigned to a new genus.

Anhuisaurus

Chen

1985
1985 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Preoccupied by lizard genus Anhuisaurus Hou, 1974. Junior synonym of Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus geishanensis was an ichthyosaur, an extinct marine reptile, from the Early Triassic of Chaohu, China. It has also been called Anhuisaurus and Chensaurus. It was described by Young and Dong in 1972...

.

Arthropterygius
Arthropterygius
Arthropterygius is an ichthyosaur which existed in Canada during the late Jurassic period. It contains the type species Arthropterygius chrisorum, named in 2010 by Erin E. Maxwell. Arthropterygius is the generic replacement name for Ophthalmosaurus chrisorum, named in 1993 from fossils found on ...


Maxwell

2010
2010 in paleontology
-Anomalocaridids:-Newly named crustaceans:-Newly named insects:* A new family, Cascopleciidae, is published by Poinar Jr.* A new family of ceraphronoid Hymenopters, Radiophronidae, is published by Ortega-Blanco, Rasnitsyn, and Delclòs....


Valid.

uJ.

North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...


Athabascasaurus
Athabascasaurus
Athabascasaurus is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from the Alberta of Canada.-Description:Athabascasaurus is known from the holotype TMP 2000.29.01, articulated nearly complete postcranial skeleton and nearly complete skull preserved in dorsal view, missing the premaxilla...


Druckenmiller

Maxwell

2010
2010 in paleontology
-Anomalocaridids:-Newly named crustaceans:-Newly named insects:* A new family, Cascopleciidae, is published by Poinar Jr.* A new family of ceraphronoid Hymenopters, Radiophronidae, is published by Ortega-Blanco, Rasnitsyn, and Delclòs....


Valid.

lK.

North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...


Barracudasauroides
Barracudasauroides
Barracudasauroides is a genus of mixosaurid ichthyosaur which lived during the Middle Triassic. Fossils of this genus have been found in Guizhou Province, China. It is known from GMPKU-P-1033, a partial skeleton recovered from the Upper Member of the Guanling Formation of Yangjuan village, Xinmin...


Maisch

2010
2010 in paleontology
-Anomalocaridids:-Newly named crustaceans:-Newly named insects:* A new family, Cascopleciidae, is published by Poinar Jr.* A new family of ceraphronoid Hymenopters, Radiophronidae, is published by Ortega-Blanco, Rasnitsyn, and Delclòs....


Valid.

mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...


Besanosaurus
Besanosaurus
Besanosaurus is a genus of large ichthyosaur that lived during the middle Triassic period, approximately 235 million years ago. This marine reptile came from the family Shastasauridae and was named by Dal Sasso and Pinna in 1996...


Dal Sasso

Pinna

1996
1996 in paleontology
-Newly named crustaceans:-Dinosaurs:* In the summer excavation resumed on the Talkeetna Mountains Hadrosaur, discovered in a quarry near the Glenn Highway, approximately 150 miles northeast of Anchorage.-Newly named dinosaurs:...


Valid.

mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius is a genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from England and European Russia. Brachypterygius was named by Friedrich von Huene in 1922 and the type species is therefore Brachypterygius extremus. The holotype of B. extremus is known from Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic of...


von Huene

1922
1922 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Valid.

uJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

A uJ Ophthalmosaurid closely related to Platypterygius
Platypterygius
Platypterygius was an ichthyosaur of the family Ophthalmosauridae. It is most closely related to the genera Caypullisaurus and Brachypterygius.-Discovery and species:...

 and Caypullisaurus
Caypullisaurus
Caypullisaurus is an extinct genus of large ichthyosaur from the Late Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous of Argentina. Its holotype was collected from the Vaca Muerta Formation of Cerro Lotena, Neuquen, dating to the early Tithonian stage of the Late Jurassic, about 150 million years ago...

. Fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s have been found in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

an Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

.

Californosaurus
Californosaurus
Californosaurus perrini was an ichthyosaur, an extinct reptile, from the Lower Hosselkus Limestone of California. It has also been known as Shastasaurus perrini and Delphinosaurus perrini. It is the basal-most known true ichthyosaur...


Kuhn

1934
1934 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
uT.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

A 3 meter teretocnemid who is also the basal-most known Euichthyosaurian. Its remains were first recovered from the Carnian
Carnian
The Carnian is the lowermost stage of the Upper Triassic series . It lasted from about 228.7 till 216.5 million years ago . The Carnian is preceded by the Ladinian and is followed by the Norian...

 Lower Hosselkus Limestone of California. Californosaurus has also been known as Shastasaurus perrini
Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the middle and late Triassic, and is the largest marine reptile that has yet been found. Specimens have been reported from the United States, Canada, and China...

 and Delphinosaurus perrini.

Callawayia
Callawayia
Callawayia is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur. It contains the species Callawayia neoscapularis and C. altispinus....


Maische

Matzke

2000
2000 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named placoderms:-Amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr...


Valid.

Caypullisaurus
Caypullisaurus
Caypullisaurus is an extinct genus of large ichthyosaur from the Late Jurassic to the Early Cretaceous of Argentina. Its holotype was collected from the Vaca Muerta Formation of Cerro Lotena, Neuquen, dating to the early Tithonian stage of the Late Jurassic, about 150 million years ago...


Fernández

1997
1997 in paleontology
-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

Valid.
uJ.

to

lK.

S. America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

.

A large ophthalmosaurid closely related to Platypterygius
Platypterygius
Platypterygius was an ichthyosaur of the family Ophthalmosauridae. It is most closely related to the genera Caypullisaurus and Brachypterygius.-Discovery and species:...

 and Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius is a genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from England and European Russia. Brachypterygius was named by Friedrich von Huene in 1922 and the type species is therefore Brachypterygius extremus. The holotype of B. extremus is known from Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic of...

. It was discovered in strata dating to the uJ - lK of Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

.

Chacaicosaurus
Chacaicosaurus
Chacaicosaurus is an extinct genus of long-snouted thunnosaur ichthyosaur known from northwestern Patagonia of Argentina.-Description:Chacaicosaurus is known only from the holotype MOZ 5803, articulated partial skeleton which preserved partial skull and almost complete forefin...


Fernández

1994
1994 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* Aff. Rebbachisaurus gastroliths documented.* The "Talkeetna Mountains Hadrosaur" specimen was discovered in a quarry being excavated for road material. The quarry is near the Glenn Highway, approximately 150 miles northeast of Anchorage...


Valid.

S. America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

.

A Bajocian
Bajocian
In the geologic timescale, the Bajocian is an age or stage in the Middle Jurassic. It lasted from approximately 171.6 Ma to around 167.7 Ma . The Bajocian age succeeds the Aalenian age and precedes the Bathonian age....

 genus whose fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s have been found in Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...

. Possibly a stenopterygiid.

Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus geishanensis was an ichthyosaur, an extinct marine reptile, from the Early Triassic of Chaohu, China. It has also been called Anhuisaurus and Chensaurus. It was described by Young and Dong in 1972...


Young

Dong

1972
1972 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:...


Valid.

lT.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

A primitive ichthyosaur that retained a lizard-like body discoverered in Chaohu, China. It was also one of the smallest ichthyosaurs, being from 70 to 180 cm long and an estimated weight of 10 kg.

Chensaurus

Mazin

Suteethorn

Buffetaut

Jaeger

Helmcke-Ingavat

1991
1991 in paleontology
-Birds:* Sankar Chatterjee's discovery of a possible Triassic bird, Protoavis, if genuine, would push avian origins back almost 70 million years. The find ignites controversy over the connection between dinosaurs and birds....


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus
Chaohusaurus geishanensis was an ichthyosaur, an extinct marine reptile, from the Early Triassic of Chaohu, China. It has also been called Anhuisaurus and Chensaurus. It was described by Young and Dong in 1972...

.

Chonespondylus
Chonespondylus
Chonespondylus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur. It was formally described by Leidy in 1868.-External links:* at the Paleobiology Database....


Leidy

1868
1868 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Contectopalatus
Contectopalatus
Contectopalatus was a primitive ichthyosaur, an extinct fish-like marine reptile from the Middle Triassic of Germany. It was originally named Ichthyosaurus atavus , and later Mixosaurus atavus . It was recognised as a valid genus by Maisch and Matzke in 1998, though other authorities argue that it...


Maische

Matzke

1998
1998 in paleontology
-Amphibians:A. C. Henrici. 1998. A new pipoid anuran from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation at Dinosaur National Monument, Utah. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18:321-332-Dinosaurs:...

Disputed.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

A strange mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

 mixosaurid with a high crest of bone on its head and a 5 meter body. It was thought to be a Mixosaurus
Mixosaurus
Mixosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur. Fossils of Mixosaurus have been found all over the world - China, Timor, Indonesia, Italy, Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Canada, Alaska, and Nevada. It was named in 1887 by George H. Baur...

 species for some time until given its own genus in 1998
1998 in paleontology
-Amphibians:A. C. Henrici. 1998. A new pipoid anuran from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation at Dinosaur National Monument, Utah. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18:321-332-Dinosaurs:...

. Some experts have felt that the splitting was unjustified.

Cymbospondylus
Cymbospondylus
Cymbospondylus was a basal early ichthyosaur that lived between the middle and later years of the Triassic period...


Leidy

1868
1868 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Valid.

lT.

to

mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

One of the largest ichthyosaurs, adults ranged in length from 6 m (18 ft) up to 10 m (30 ft) long. It was one of the least fish-like of the ichthyosaurs, lacking a dorsal fin
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...

 and fluked tail. Consequently, Cymbospondylus probably swam by wriggling its body from side to side like a modern sea snake.

Delphinosaurus

Merriam

1905
1905 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Californosaurus
Californosaurus
Californosaurus perrini was an ichthyosaur, an extinct reptile, from the Lower Hosselkus Limestone of California. It has also been known as Shastasaurus perrini and Delphinosaurus perrini. It is the basal-most known true ichthyosaur...

.

Eurhinosaurus
Eurhinosaurus
Eurhinosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe...


Abel

1909
1909 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data coutersy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-People:...


Valid.

lJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

A genus exceeding 6 m in length from the Sinemurian
Sinemurian
In the geologic timescale, the Sinemurian is an age or stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic epoch or series. It spans the time between 196.5 ± 2 Ma and 189.6 ± 1.5 Ma...

 to Toarcian
Toarcian
The Toarcian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, an age or stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic. It spans the time between 183.0 Ma and 175.6 Ma...

 of England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. Eurhinosaurus was built like a regular ichthyosaur, with a fish
Fish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...

-like body including a large eyes, dorsal
Dorsal fin
A dorsal fin is a fin located on the backs of various unrelated marine and freshwater vertebrates, including most fishes, marine mammals , and the ichthyosaurs...

 and caudal fins, but had one distinct feature that set it apart from other ichthyosaurs; its upper jaw was twice as long as the lower jaw and covered with sidewards-pointing 'teeth', like a sawfish's.

Eurypterygius

Jaekel

1904
1904 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:-References:* Brown, B. Stomach stones and food of plesiosaurs, Science, n.s. 20, : 184-185...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe . It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, with the Order Ichthyosauria being named after it...

.

Excalibosaurus
Excalibosaurus
Excalibosaurus is a monotypic genus of marine prehistoric fish-like reptiles that lived during the Sinemurian stage of the Early Jurassic period in what is now England...


McGowan

1986
1986 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Pterosaurs:...

Valid.
lJ.

Lived during the Sinemurian
Sinemurian
In the geologic timescale, the Sinemurian is an age or stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic epoch or series. It spans the time between 196.5 ± 2 Ma and 189.6 ± 1.5 Ma...

 stage in what is now England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

. It is characterized by the extreme elongation of the rostrum
Rostrum (anatomy)
The term rostrum is used for a number of unrelated structures in different groups of animals:*In crustaceans, the rostrum is the forward extension of the carapace in front of the eyes....

, giving the animal a swordfish
Swordfish
Swordfish , also known as broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory, predatory fish characterized by a long, flat bill. They are a popular sport fish of the billfish category, though elusive. Swordfish are elongated, round-bodied, and lose all teeth and scales by adulthood...

-like look. Excalibosaurus is known from two skeletons. The holotype
Holotype
A holotype is a single physical example of an organism, known to have been used when the species was formally described. It is either the single such physical example or one of several such, but explicitly designated as the holotype...

 was from a juvenile with an estimated body length of 4 m. The estimated body length of the second specimen, discovered in 1996, is 7 m.

Grendelius

McGowan

1976
1976 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius is a genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from England and European Russia. Brachypterygius was named by Friedrich von Huene in 1922 and the type species is therefore Brachypterygius extremus. The holotype of B. extremus is known from Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic of...

.

Grippia
Grippia
Grippia is a genus of ichthyosaur, an extinct group of reptiles that resembled dolphins. Fossils have been found along the coasts of Greenland, China, Japan, and Canada; of Early Triassic age. These ichthyosaurs were small; they were 1 - 1.5 m in length...


Wiman

1930
1930 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
lT.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

.

Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

A small ichthyosaur only 1-1.5 m long, its fossils have been found along the coasts of Greenland
Greenland
Greenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...

, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

, and Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

Guizhouichthyosaurus
Guizhouichthyosaurus
Guizhouichthyosaurus is a genus of Ichthyosaur which existed during the lower Carnian stage of the Late Triassic in southwest China. In contains the species Guizhouichthyosaurus tangae. It had been referred to the genus Shastasaurus in the past, but later study showed that it is likely distinct,...


Cao

Luo

2000
2000 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named placoderms:-Amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the middle and late Triassic, and is the largest marine reptile that has yet been found. Specimens have been reported from the United States, Canada, and China...

.

Himalayasaurus

Young

Dong

1972
1972 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Shonisaurus.

Hudsonelpidia
Hudsonelpidia
Hudsonelpidia is an extinct genus of small parvipelvian ichthyosaur known from British Columbia of Canada.-Description:Hudsonelpidia is known only from the holotype, a nearly complete skeleton which preserved the skull. It was collected in the Jewitt Spur locality from the Pardonet Formation,...


McGowan

1995
1995 in paleontology
-Arachnids:-Insects:-Dinosaurs:* Fossil hunters working on behalf of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum discover a large coprolite from a theropod dinosaur in Maastrichtian strata. In 1997 it is sent to coprolite specialist Karen Chin, who determines that this specimen of fossilized feces was...


Valid.

uT.

Hupehsuchus
Hupehsuchus
Hupehsuchus was a small genus of marine reptile, about 1 meter long. It was found in the area of Hubei in China. This marine reptile lived in the Olenekian stage of the Early Triassic period. Hupehsuchus was similar to its close cousin, Nanchangosaurus, but differed from it in a number of ways...


Carroll

Dong

1991
1991 in paleontology
-Birds:* Sankar Chatterjee's discovery of a possible Triassic bird, Protoavis, if genuine, would push avian origins back almost 70 million years. The find ignites controversy over the connection between dinosaurs and birds....


Valid.

mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygian from the mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

 of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...

. The type species
Type species
In biological nomenclature, a type species is both a concept and a practical system which is used in the classification and nomenclature of animals and plants. The value of a "type species" lies in the fact that it makes clear what is meant by a particular genus name. A type species is the species...

 is H. nanchangensis.

Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe . It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, with the Order Ichthyosauria being named after it...


De la Beche

Conybeare

1821
1821 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* On 21 June, Gideon Algernon Mantell displays his Iguanodon fossils to the Geological Society, but arouses little interest....

Valid.
lJ.

Isfjordosaurus
Isfjordosaurus
Isfjordosaurus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur. It was formally described by Ryosuke Motani in 1999, and contains the species Isfjordosaurus minor.-External links:* at www.biolib.cz....


Motani

1999
1999 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named taxa:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...


Valid.

Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygian.

Leptocheirus

Merriam

1903
1903 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data coutersy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Valid.

Leptonectes
Leptonectes
Leptonectes is a genus of ichthyosaur that lived in the Late Triassic to Early Jurassic . Fossils have been found in Belgium, England, Germany and Switzerland....


McGowan

1996
1996 in paleontology
-Newly named crustaceans:-Dinosaurs:* In the summer excavation resumed on the Talkeetna Mountains Hadrosaur, discovered in a quarry near the Glenn Highway, approximately 150 miles northeast of Anchorage.-Newly named dinosaurs:...


Valid.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Lived from the Rhaetian
Rhaetian
The Rhaetian is in geochronology the latest age of the Triassic period or in chronostratigraphy the uppermost stage of the Triassic system. It lasted from 203.6 ± 1.5 to 199.6 ± 0.6 million years ago...

 to Pliensbachian
Pliensbachian
The Pliensbachian is an age of the geologic timescale or stage in the stratigraphic column. It is part of the Early or Lower Jurassic epoch or series and spans the time between 189.6 ± 1.5 Ma and 183 ± 1.5 Ma . The Pliensbachian is preceded by the Sinemurian and followed by the Toarcian.The...

 in what is now Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...

, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

.

Leptopterygius

Huene

1922
1922 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Valid.

uT.
to
lJ.

Macgowania
Macgowania
Macgowania is an extinct genus of parvipelvian ichthyosaur known from British Columbia of Canada.-Description:Macgowania is known only from the holotype ROM 41992 , a partial skeleton which preserved nearly complete skull, almost complete forefin and other postcranial elements...


Motani

1999
1999 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named taxa:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Valid.

Macropterygius

Huene

1923
1923 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Aegirosaurus
Aegirosaurus
Aegirosaurus is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous of Europe.-Discovery and species:...

.

Maiaspondylus
Maiaspondylus
Maiaspondylus is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from Northwest Territories of Canada.-Description:Maiaspondylus is known from the holotype UALVP 45635, a disarticulated but nearly complete skeleton preserved in three dimensions and from the referred materials...


Maxwell

Caldwell

2006
2006 in paleontology
-Insects:-Tetrapodomorphs:-Newly named temnospondylians:-Newly named amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named basal lepidosauromorphs:-Newly named plesiosaurs:-Newly named squamates:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:...

Valid.
uK.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

Merriamia

Boulenger

1904
1904 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:-References:* Brown, B. Stomach stones and food of plesiosaurs, Science, n.s. 20, : 184-185...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Toretocnemus
Toretocnemus
Toretocnemus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur. Its remains have been found in California, U.S.A....

.

Metashastasaurus

Nicholls

Manabe

2001
2001 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named bony fishes:-Newly named amphibians:-Newly named turtles:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named basal lepidosauromorphs:-Newly named plesiosaurs:-Newly named sphenodonts:-Newly named basal archosauromorphs:...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Callawayia
Callawayia
Callawayia is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur. It contains the species Callawayia neoscapularis and C. altispinus....

.

Mikadocephalus
Mikadocephalus
Mikadocephalus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur. Its remains have been found in Europe....


Maisch

Matzke

1998
1998 in paleontology
-Amphibians:A. C. Henrici. 1998. A new pipoid anuran from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation at Dinosaur National Monument, Utah. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18:321-332-Dinosaurs:...

Valid.
Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Mixosaurus
Mixosaurus
Mixosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur. Fossils of Mixosaurus have been found all over the world - China, Timor, Indonesia, Italy, Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Canada, Alaska, and Nevada. It was named in 1887 by George H. Baur...


Baur

1887
1887 in paleontology
-Classification Events:* Harry Govier Seeley divides the Dinosaurs into two taxa based on the configuration of their hip bones. -Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-New taxa:-Paleontologists:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Mollesaurus
Mollesaurus
Mollesaurus is an extinct genus of large ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from northwestern Patagonia of Argentina.-Description:Mollesaurus is known from the holotype MOZ 2282 V, articulated partial skeleton which preserved partial skull and most of the vertebral column...


Fernandez

1999
1999 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named taxa:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus is an ichthyosaur of the Middle to Late Jurassic period , named for its extremely large eyes. It had a graceful 6 metre long dolphin-shaped body, and its almost toothless jaw was well adapted for catching squid...

.

Myopterygius

von Huene

1922
1922 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...

Syn.
Synonymy of Platypterygius

Nanchangosaurus
Nanchangosaurus
Nanchangosaurus was a large aquatic reptile native to the middle Triassic of China. It was named after the area in China, Nanchang, where it was found. It was about three feet in length, and probably fed on fish or used its long jaws to probe for aquatic invertebrates...


Wang

1959
1959 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Nannopterygius
Nannopterygius
Nannopterygius is a genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur that lived in the Late Jurassic . Fossils have been found in England and Germany....


Huene

1922
1922 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
uJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Nannopterygius is a genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of ophthalmosaurid
Ophthalmosauridae
Ophthalmosauridae is an extinct family of thunnosaur ichthyosaurs from the Middle Jurassic to the early Late Cretaceous of Asia, Australia, Europe, North America and South America. Currently, the oldest known ophthalmosaurid is Mollesaurus from the early Bajocian of Argentina. Named by George H...

 ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins...

 that lived in from the Kimmeridgian
Kimmeridgian
In the geologic timescale, the Kimmeridgian is an age or stage in the Late or Upper Jurassic epoch or series. It spans the time between 155.7 ± 4 Ma and 150.8 ± 4 Ma . The Kimmeridgian follows the Oxfordian and precedes the Tithonian....

 to Tithonian
Tithonian
In the geologic timescale the Tithonian is the latest age of the Late Jurassic epoch or the uppermost stage of the Upper Jurassic series. It spans the time between 150.8 ± 4 Ma and 145.5 ± 4 Ma...

. Fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s have been found in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

.

Omphalosaurus
Omphalosaurus
Omphalosaurus is an extinct genus of marine reptile from the Early Triassic of Spitsbergen.It has generally been considered an ichthyopterygian until Motani showed that it lacks the basal synapomorphies of Ichthyopterygia. However, Maisch described a new species and restated the affinity with...


Merriam

1906
1906 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* Apatosaurus gastroliths documented.* Wieland claims to have found stegosaur gastroliths.-Newly named dinosaurs:Data coutersy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-References:...

Valid.
lT.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

An extinct
Extinction
In biology and ecology, extinction is the end of an organism or of a group of organisms , normally a species. The moment of extinction is generally considered to be the death of the last individual of the species, although the capacity to breed and recover may have been lost before this point...

 genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of marine reptile
Marine reptile
Marine reptiles are reptiles which have become secondarily adapted for an aquatic or semi-aquatic life in a marine environment.The earliest marine reptiles arose in the Permian period during the Paleozoic era...

 from Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. Constituting the western-most bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea...

. Is has been considered an ichthyopterygia
Ichthyopterygia
Ichthyopterygia was a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1840 to designate the Jurassic ichthyosaurs that were known at the time, but the term is now used more often for both true Ichthyosauria and their more primitive early and middle Triassic ancestors.Basal ichthyopterygians were...

n, however a study by Motani in 2000 showed that it lacks the basal synapomorphies
Synapomorphy
In cladistics, a synapomorphy or synapomorphic character is a trait that is shared by two or more taxa and their most recent common ancestor, whose ancestor in turn does not possess the trait. A synapomorphy is thus an apomorphy visible in multiple taxa, where the trait in question originates in...

 of Ichthyopterygia. As such, its exact position in the diapsid
Diapsid
Diapsids are a group of reptiles that developed two holes in each side of their skulls, about 300 million years ago during the late Carboniferous period. Living diapsids are extremely diverse, and include all crocodiles, lizards, snakes, and tuatara...

 tree is currently unknown.

Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus is an ichthyosaur of the Middle to Late Jurassic period , named for its extremely large eyes. It had a graceful 6 metre long dolphin-shaped body, and its almost toothless jaw was well adapted for catching squid...


Seeley

1874
1874 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Newly named pterosaurs:-new taxa:...

Valid.
mJ
Middle Jurassic
The Middle Jurassic is the second epoch of the Jurassic Period. It lasted from 176-161 million years ago. In European lithostratigraphy, rocks of this Middle Jurassic age are called the Dogger....

.

to

uJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

S. America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...

.

Otschevia

Efimov

1997
1997 in paleontology
-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius
Brachypterygius is a genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from England and European Russia. Brachypterygius was named by Friedrich von Huene in 1922 and the type species is therefore Brachypterygius extremus. The holotype of B. extremus is known from Kimmeridgian stage of the Late Jurassic of...

.

Panjiangsaurus

Chen

Chang

2003
2003 in paleontology
-New taxa:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-newly named:-Conifers:-Angiosperms:...


Jr. synonym.

N/A

N/A

Junior synonym of Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the middle and late Triassic, and is the largest marine reptile that has yet been found. Specimens have been reported from the United States, Canada, and China...

.

Paraophthalmosaurus

Arkhangelsky

1997
1997 in paleontology
-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus is an ichthyosaur of the Middle to Late Jurassic period , named for its extremely large eyes. It had a graceful 6 metre long dolphin-shaped body, and its almost toothless jaw was well adapted for catching squid...

.

Parvinatator
Parvinatator
Parvinatator is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur which existed in the Triassic Period. Its fossils have been found in British Columbia, Canada....


Nicholls

Brinkman

1995
1995 in paleontology
-Arachnids:-Insects:-Dinosaurs:* Fossil hunters working on behalf of the Royal Saskatchewan Museum discover a large coprolite from a theropod dinosaur in Maastrichtian strata. In 1997 it is sent to coprolite specialist Karen Chin, who determines that this specimen of fossilized feces was...

Valid.
Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygian.

Pessopteryx

Wiman

1910
1910 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* AMNH 5244, a ceratopsian braincase, was found isolated during an American Museum of Natural History Barnum Brown-led expedition.-Newly named dinosaurs:...

Valid.

Pessosaurus
Pessosaurus
Pessosaurus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur which existed during the Middle Triassic period....


Wiman

1910
1910 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* AMNH 5244, a ceratopsian braincase, was found isolated during an American Museum of Natural History Barnum Brown-led expedition.-Newly named dinosaurs:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Phalarodon
Phalarodon
Phalarodon is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur. Its remains have been found in North America and Spitsbergen....


Merriam

1910
1910 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:* AMNH 5244, a ceratopsian braincase, was found isolated during an American Museum of Natural History Barnum Brown-led expedition.-Newly named dinosaurs:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

Phantomosaurus
Phantomosaurus
Phantomosaurus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur, which existed during the late Anisian period. Fossils of the species Phantomosaurus neubigi have been found in southern Germany....


Maisch

Matzke

2000
2000 in paleontology
-Newly named insects:-Newly named placoderms:-Amphibians:-Ichthyosaurs:-Newly named crurotarsans:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr...

Valid.

Platypterygius
Platypterygius
Platypterygius was an ichthyosaur of the family Ophthalmosauridae. It is most closely related to the genera Caypullisaurus and Brachypterygius.-Discovery and species:...


Kuhn

1946
Valid.
uK.

Plutonisaurus

Efimov

1997
1997 in paleontology
-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Platypterygius
Platypterygius
Platypterygius was an ichthyosaur of the family Ophthalmosauridae. It is most closely related to the genera Caypullisaurus and Brachypterygius.-Discovery and species:...

.

Proteosaurus

Home

1819
Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe . It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, with the Order Ichthyosauria being named after it...

.

Protoichthyosaurus

Appleby

1979
1979 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus
Ichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic of Europe . It is among the best known ichthyosaur genera, with the Order Ichthyosauria being named after it...

.

Qianichthyosaurus
Qianichthyosaurus
Qianichthyosaurus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur from the late Triassic period. Its fossils have been found in southeastern China....


Li

1999
1999 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named taxa:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Valid.

Sangiorgiosaurus

Brinkmann

1998
1998 in paleontology
-Amphibians:A. C. Henrici. 1998. A new pipoid anuran from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation at Dinosaur National Monument, Utah. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18:321-332-Dinosaurs:...

Valid.

Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus
Shastasaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyosaur from the middle and late Triassic, and is the largest marine reptile that has yet been found. Specimens have been reported from the United States, Canada, and China...


Merriam

1895
1895 in paleontology
-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
mT
Middle Triassic
In the geologic timescale, the Middle Triassic is the second of three epochs of the Triassic period or the middle of three series in which the Triassic system is divided. It spans the time between 245 ± 1.5 Ma and 228 ± 2 Ma...

 to uT.

Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

Shastasaurus is a genus of ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins...

 from whose remains have been found in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

, Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

, Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen
Spitsbergen is the largest and only permanently populated island of the Svalbard archipelago in Norway. Constituting the western-most bulk of the archipelago, it borders the Arctic Ocean, the Norwegian Sea and the Greenland Sea...

 and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

.

Shonisaurus

Camp

1976
1976 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Newly named dinosaurs:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...


Valid.

uT.

?Asia
Asia
Asia is the world's largest and most populous continent, located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres. It covers 8.7% of the Earth's total surface area and with approximately 3.879 billion people, it hosts 60% of the world's current human population...

.

N. America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...

.

The largest genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

 of ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaur
Ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins...

 that has yet been found. Fossil
Fossil
Fossils are the preserved remains or traces of animals , plants, and other organisms from the remote past...

s of Shonisaurus were first found in Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...

 in 1920. It lived during the Norian
Norian
The Norian is a division of the Triassic geological period. It has the rank of an age or stage . The Norian lasted from 216.5 ± 2.0 to 203.6 ± 1.5 million years ago. It was preceded by the Carnian and succeeded by the Rhaetian.-Stratigraphic definitions:The Norian was named after the Noric Alps in...

 stage of the late Triassic
Triassic
The Triassic is a geologic period and system that extends from about 250 to 200 Mya . As the first period of the Mesozoic Era, the Triassic follows the Permian and is followed by the Jurassic. Both the start and end of the Triassic are marked by major extinction events...

 period and had a long pointed mouth that contained teeth only at the front end. S. popularis specimens reached a length of 15 meters (50 feet). A second species, S. sikanniensis, was later discovered in British Columbia
British Columbia
British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

 and has an estimated length of 21 meters (70 feet).

Simbirskia

Otschev

Efimov

1985
1985 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Valid.

Simbirskiasaurus
Simbirskiasaurus
-External links:* at the Paleobiology Database....


Otschev

Efimov

1985
1985 in paleontology
-Insects:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-New taxa:-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:-References:...

Valid.
lK.

Stenopterygius
Stenopterygius
Stenopterygius is an extinct genus of thunnosaur ichthyosaur known from Europe . Maximum length was 4 meters.-Description:...


Jaekel

1904
1904 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Non-mammalian:-References:* Brown, B. Stomach stones and food of plesiosaurs, Science, n.s. 20, : 184-185...

Valid.
lJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Lived from the Toarcian
Toarcian
The Toarcian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, an age or stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic. It spans the time between 183.0 Ma and 175.6 Ma...

 to Aalenian
Aalenian
The Aalenian is a subdivision of the Middle Jurassic epoch/series of the geologic timescale that extends from about 175.6 Ma to about 171.6 Ma . It was preceded by the Toarcian and succeeded by the Bajocian.-Stratigraphic definitions:...

 from England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 and Luxembourg
Luxembourg
Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...

. Maximum length was 4 m. One famous fossil is that of a mother and baby that died in childbirth
Childbirth
Childbirth is the culmination of a human pregnancy or gestation period with the birth of one or more newborn infants from a woman's uterus...

. This proved that ichthyosaur infants were born tail-first, just like cetacea
Cetacea
The order Cetacea includes the marine mammals commonly known as whales, dolphins, and porpoises. Cetus is Latin and is used in biological names to mean "whale"; its original meaning, "large sea animal", was more general. It comes from Ancient Greek , meaning "whale" or "any huge fish or sea...

ns, to prevent them from drowning before fully clearing the birth canal.

Suevoleviathan

Maisch

1998
1998 in paleontology
-Amphibians:A. C. Henrici. 1998. A new pipoid anuran from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation at Dinosaur National Monument, Utah. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18:321-332-Dinosaurs:...

Valid.

Svalbardosaurus
Svalbardosaurus
Svalbardosaurus is a genus of ichtyosaurs from Triassic.- External links :*http://paleodb.geology.wisc.edu/cgi-bin/bridge.pl?a=basicTaxonInfo&taxon_no=170940...


Mazin

1981
1981 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Plesiosaurs:* Carroll, R. C., 1981, Plesiosaur ancestors from the Upper Permian of Madagascar: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, London B, v. 293,...

Nomen dubium
Nomen dubium
In zoological nomenclature, a nomen dubium is a scientific name that is of unknown or doubtful application...

.

lT.

Sveltonectes
Sveltonectes
Sveltonectes is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from Ul’yanovsk region, western Russia.-Description:Sveltonectes is known from the holotype IRSNB R269, an almost complete three-dimensionally preserved skeleton which preserved partial skull...


Fischer

Masure

Arkhangelsky

Godefroit

2011
2011 in paleontology
-Lobopods:-Arachnids:-Insects:-Newly named jawless vertebrates:-Newly named acanthodian:-Newly named cartilaginous fishes:-Newly named bony fishes:-Newly named lepospondyls:-Newly named temnospondyls:-Newly named lissamphibians:...

Valid.
lK.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Temnodontosaurus
Temnodontosaurus
Temnodontosaurus was an ichthyosaur from the Early Jurassic, some 198 and 185 million years ago , in Europe...


Lydekker

1889
1889 in paleontology
-Dinosaurs:-New taxa:...

Valid.
lJ.

Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.
Lived from the Hettangian
Hettangian
The Hettangian is the earliest age or lowest stage of the Jurassic period of the geologic timescale. It spans the time between 199.6 ± 0.6 Ma and 196.5 ± 1 Ma . The Hettangian follows the Rhaetian and is followed by the Sinemurian.In Europe stratigraphy the Hettangian is a part of the time span in...

 to Toarcian
Toarcian
The Toarcian is, in the ICS' geologic timescale, an age or stage in the Early or Lower Jurassic. It spans the time between 183.0 Ma and 175.6 Ma...

 in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

 and Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It was a large genus
Genus
In biology, a genus is a low-level taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of living and fossil organisms, which is an example of definition by genus and differentia...

, exceeded 12 meters (30 ft) in length. Temnodontosaurus eyes were approximately 20 cm (8 in) in diameter making them the largest of any known vertebrate.
>-

Thaisaurus
Thaisaurus
Thaisaurus is an extinct genus of ichthyopterygian which existed in the Triassic period....


Mazin

Sutetthorn

Buffetaut

Jaeger

Helmcke-Ignavat

1991
1991 in paleontology
-Birds:* Sankar Chatterjee's discovery of a possible Triassic bird, Protoavis, if genuine, would push avian origins back almost 70 million years. The find ignites controversy over the connection between dinosaurs and birds....

Valid.
Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygian.

Toretocnemus
Toretocnemus
Toretocnemus is an extinct genus of Ichthyosaur. Its remains have been found in California, U.S.A....


Merriam

1902
1902 in paleontology
-Crurotarsi:-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.-Prolacertiformes:...

Valid.
uT.

Undorosaurus
Undorosaurus
Undorosaurus is an extinct genus of ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaur known from Ul'yanovsk Province of western Russia.-Description:Undorosaurus is known from the holotype UPM EP-II-20 , a partial three-dimensionally preserved skeleton which preserved partial skull...


Efimov

1997
1997 in paleontology
-newly named:-Newly named birds:-Dinosaurs:* Paleontologist Karen Chin receives a coprolite that was excavated during 1995 from strata dating back to the Maastrichtian in Saskatchewan, Canada. The specimen was about 17 inches long and contained fragments of bone...

Jr. synonym. N/A N/A
Junior synonym of Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus
Ophthalmosaurus is an ichthyosaur of the Middle to Late Jurassic period , named for its extremely large eyes. It had a graceful 6 metre long dolphin-shaped body, and its almost toothless jaw was well adapted for catching squid...

.

Utatsusaurus
Utatsusaurus
Utatsusaurus is the earliest-known form of an ichthyopterygian , which lived in the early Triassic period . Unlike the more advanced ichthyosaurs, Utatsusaurus has no dorsal fin and has a broad skull that tapers slowly toward the snout...


Shikoma

1978
1978 in paleontology
Paleontology, palaeontology or palæontology is the study of prehistoric life forms on Earth through the examination of plant and animal fossils...

Valid.
lT.

Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygian.

Wimanius

Maisch

Matzke

1988
1988 in paleontology
-Newly named dinosaurs:Data courtesy of George Olshevsky's dinosaur genera list and Dr. Jeremy Montague's dinosaur genus database.* The dubious family, Ornitholestidae is named by Gregory Scott Paul.-New taxa:-Non-mammalian:...

Valid.
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See also

  • Ichthyosaur
    Ichthyosaur
    Ichthyosaurs were giant marine reptiles that resembled fish and dolphins...

  • Ichthyopterygia
    Ichthyopterygia
    Ichthyopterygia was a designation introduced by Sir Richard Owen in 1840 to designate the Jurassic ichthyosaurs that were known at the time, but the term is now used more often for both true Ichthyosauria and their more primitive early and middle Triassic ancestors.Basal ichthyopterygians were...

  • List of dinosaurs
  • List of mosasaurs
  • List of plesiosaurs
  • List of pterosaurs

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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