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Plotosaurus
Taxonomy
Plotosaurus was named by Camp (1951) [Sepkoski's age data: K Maes-u Sepkoski's reference number: 1069]. It is not extant.
It was assigned to Plotosaurini by Russell (1967); to Mosasauridae by McDowell and Bogert (1954) and Carroll (1988); to Squamata by Sepkoski (2002); to Mosasaurini by LeBlanc et al. (2012); and to Mosasaurinae by Dortangs et al. (2002), Novas et al. (2002), Bell and Polcyn (2005), Frey et al. (2016) and Driscoll et al. (2019).
It was assigned to Plotosaurini by Russell (1967); to Mosasauridae by McDowell and Bogert (1954) and Carroll (1988); to Squamata by Sepkoski (2002); to Mosasaurini by LeBlanc et al. (2012); and to Mosasaurinae by Dortangs et al. (2002), Novas et al. (2002), Bell and Polcyn (2005), Frey et al. (2016) and Driscoll et al. (2019).
Species
Synonyms
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Synonymy list
| Year | Name and author |
|---|---|
| 1942 | Kolposaurus Camp p. 2 |
| 1943 | Garzasaurus Anderson p. 186 |
| 1951 | Plotosaurus Camp |
| 1954 | Plotosaurus McDowell and Bogert p. 132 |
| 1967 | Plotosaurus Russell p. 145 |
| 1988 | Plotosaurus Carroll |
| 2002 | Plotosaurus Dortangs et al. |
| 2002 | Plotosaurus Novas et al. |
| 2002 | Plotosaurus Sepkoski |
| 2005 | Plotosaurus Bell and Polcyn p. 189 |
| 2012 | Plotosaurus LeBlanc et al. |
| 2016 | Plotosaurus Frey et al. |
| 2019 | Plotosaurus Driscoll et al. |
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If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.
G. †Plotosaurus Camp 1951
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†Plotosaurus bennisoni Camp 1942
†Plotosaurus tuckeri Camp 1942
Invalid names: Garzasaurus Anderson 1943 [nomen nudum], Kolposaurus Camp 1942 [replaced]
Diagnosis
| Reference | Diagnosis | |
|---|---|---|
| C. L. Camp 1942 (Kolposaurus) | specialized genus assigned the subfamily Mosasaurinae. Skull
slender and elongate, mandibular and pterygoid teeth numerous, orbits and nares ex ceptionally large, orbits directed laterally, frontals widely expanded, pineal foramen large, parietal crest narrow, pterygoids separated on the midline, quadrate relatively small and similar Mosasaurus, no basioccipital canals. Lower jaws slender with long dentary segment and with tips dentaries produced well beyond the premaxillaries, coronoids elongated, angulars reaching nearly posterior tips articulars. Vertebrae without zygosphenes and with no zygapophyses the mid- and postero-dorsal region; nine ten cervical hypapophyses; neural spines rising low crest behind the neck; dagger-shaped interclavicle; pygal vertebrae, chevrons supporting terminal caudal fin; clavicle short, not reaching scapula; scapula with elongate anterior wing; coracoids not emarginated; pectoral paddles hyperphalangic and narrow; humerus broader than long, without radial process. |