Restoration; detailing the skull
The NHM Symphysis is a currently unnamed species of pliosaur known from a single lower jaw symphysis (which is currently in the collection of the Natural History Museum, hence the name) found in the Oxford Clay.[1] According to a 2009 thesis describing a specimen of Kronosaurus, the NHM Symphisis probably reached between 9.1–15.1 m (30–50 ft) long when fully grown, although this is just an estimate since only scant remains are known.[1] One estimate puts the NHM symphysis and the related Pliosaurus macromerus in the 15.2-18.2 m (50-60 ft) range, although his is highly unlikely.[2]
Size comparison compared to a human, great white shark and school bus
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Symphysis of the related species Liopleurodon ferox
This specimen was, at one point, referred to Simolestes, but it was probably a separate genus or a specimen of Pliosaurus macromerus.
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 McHenry, Colin Richard (2009). "Devourer of Gods: the palaeoecology of the Cretaceous pliosaur Kronosaurus queenslandicus" (PDF): 1–460.
- ↑ http://vengeancefromthedeep.com/pliosaur-size
