HOME | DD
RickRaptor105 β Long before the Mosasaurs
#ichthyosaur #marine #reptiles #triassic #ichthyosaurs #ichthyosauria #cymbospondylus #anisian #thalattoarchon #nevadanus #saurosphargis
Published: 2016-03-06 22:09:22 +0000 UTC; Views: 6311; Favourites: 51; Downloads: 6
Redirect to original
Description
Early Triassic Nevada, about 240 million years ago. While terrestrial life is still recovering from the massive extinction event at the end of the Permian, life in the sea already evolved into spectacular sizes. Giant stream-lined ichthyosaurs roam the oceans. The most common one is Cymbospondylus, a cephalopod-eating ichthyosaur that will continue to thrive throughout the Triassic. But it is no match for its close cousin Thalattoarchon, an 8.6 meter long ichthyosaur with a monstrous head full of large cutting teeth. Long before the much more famous mosasaurs evolved, this ichthyosaur was the first apex predator among marine reptiles.Related content
Comments: 30
π: 0 β©: 0
Wait, are you sure Thalattoarchon lived 240 mya?
π: 0 β©: 1
Youngest age of it's time range is 242MYA, so 240 isn't too much of a stretch.
π: 0 β©: 0
Nice to see this guy getting depicted. I was thinking who that big ichthyosaur was, but I had forgotten the name of Thalattoarchon.
π: 0 β©: 0
The good time that the ichthyosauridae still ruled !
π: 0 β©: 0
I still can't see the tully monster.
π: 0 β©: 0
So Cymbospondylus was a cephalopod eater? I guess that's another -1 for BBC...
π: 0 β©: 1
Cymbospondylus has much smaller teeth than an obvious apex predator like Thalattoarchon, so fish and cephalopods seem like the most likely prey..
But to be fair, Sea Monsters never showed the Cymbospondylus attacking another marine reptile. It snacked a wriggling bleeding Tanystropheus tail and didnΒ΄t even attack a small human.
π: 0 β©: 1
They did say AND imply Cymbospondylus as a potential threat to Nigel Marvin.
π: 0 β©: 1
Well a spem whale eats only squid but if one bit Nigel's leg I don't see him walking away
π: 0 β©: 1
A sperm whale is several dozen times the size of Ctmbospondylus and actually has large teeth.
π: 0 β©: 1
Well yeah but if this animal was as big as Rick ashley the Raptor says it is it could very well injure a person if they are not careful.
π: 0 β©: 1
Yes but no more so than a large dolphin could.
π: 0 β©: 0
AT LAST.
This is the Thalattoarchon image I had been waiting for!
π: 0 β©: 0
cymbospondylus got rekt. also YOU'RE ALIVE!
π: 0 β©: 1
Same. I thought that he will never visit DA.
π: 0 β©: 1
I visit DeviantArt multiple times a day. Just because I donΒ΄t upload something every week does not mean that I donΒ΄t keep up with all the new paleo discoveries and deviations.
π: 0 β©: 0
Underrated sea monsters! I love underrated sea monsters! Also this scene is awesome.
π: 0 β©: 0
So mosasaurs are essentially ichthyosaur mimics.
π: 0 β©: 0
I wouldnΒ΄t call them "proto-mosasaurs" since ichthyosaurs are not related to mosasaurs (which are lizards).
That would be like calling any marine reptile a "proto-whale".
π: 0 β©: 1
I know. That's just a nickname I conjured up for these ichthyosaurs.
I also know that ichthyosaurs are more closely related to plesiosaurs/pliosaurs than to mosasaurs, and that mosasaurs are actually members of Squamates (lizards and snakes).
π: 0 β©: 1
You could call them "mosasaur analogues" since they're both streamlined long-bodied apex predators with long jaws and a tail fin.
π: 0 β©: 2
Same with metriorhynchids.
π: 0 β©: 0
Flagged as Spam
π: 0 β©: 1
Amazing to see how life can evolve to be in one niche and then quickly be replaced. Nice work!
π: 0 β©: 0
