Stomach contents of P. overtoni included turtles and ammonites, providing another example of a diet specialized for harder prey. It lived from about 82 to 66 million years ago during the Campanian and Maastrichtian stages of the Late Cretaceous. [22] Richard Ellis speculated in 2003 that this may have been the earliest discovery of the second species M. missouriensis,[23] although competing speculations exist. "The science of the Crystal Palace Dinosaurs, part 2: "The world's first dinosaur park: what the Victorians got right and wrong", "Convergent Evolution in Aquatic Tetrapods: Insights from an Exceptional Fossil Mosasaur". [24] In 1818, a fossil from Monmouth County, New Jersey became the first North American specimen to be correctly recognized as a Mosasaurus by scientists of the time. The radius and ulna are short, but the former is taller and larger than the latter. [5] The quadrate also housed the hearing structures, with the eardrum residing within a round and concave depression in the outer surface called the tympanic ala.[60] The trachea likely stretched from the esophagus to below the back end of the lower jaw's coronoid process, where it split into smaller pairs of bronchi which extended parallel to each other. [76] In 2014, Konishi and colleagues expressed a number of concerns with the reliance on Bell's study. Mosasaurus (/mozsrs/; "lizard of the Meuse River") is the type genus (defining example) of the mosasaurs, an extinct group of aquatic squamate reptiles. These environments were dominated by mosasaurs and marine side-necked turtles. The exact affinities of Mosasaurus as a squamate remain controversial, and scientists continue to debate whether its closest living relatives are monitor lizards or snakes. [14] By 1808, Camper's son Adriaan Gilles Camper and Georges Cuvier concluded that the fossil,[16] which by then was nicknamed the "great animal of Maastricht",[13] belonged to a marine lizard with affinities to monitor lizards, but otherwise unlike any modern animal. [88][126] Lingham-Soliar (1995) elaborated on this, finding that Maastrichtian deposits in the Netherlands with M. hoffmannii occurrences represented nearshore waters around 4050 meters (130160ft) deep. As a result, some paleontologists caution that lower-order classification results from Conrad's 2008 study such as the specific placement of Mosasaurus may contain technical problems, making them inaccurate. [67] The tail vertebrae gradually shorten around the center of the tail and lengthen behind the center, suggesting rigidness around the tail center and excellent flexibility behind it. With the impending release of the fourth film in the Jurassic Park series we thought we'd present you with the most ferocious bites in the dinosaur kingdom. [h][66], One of the most complete Mosasaurus skeletons in terms of vertebral representation (Mosasaurus sp. (2017). [102], Many of the earliest fossils of Mosasaurus were found in Campanian stage deposits in North America, including the Western Interior Seaway, an inland sea which once flowed through what is now the central United States and Canada, and connected the Arctic Ocean to the modern-day Gulf of Mexico. It lived from about 82 to 66 million years ago during the Campanian and Maastrichtian stages of the Late Cretaceous. [61], Another case of presumed niche partitioning between Mosasaurus and Prognathodon from the Bearpaw Formation in Alberta was documented in a 2014 study by Konishi and colleagues. His calculations interpreted "body length" as the length of the postcranial body, not the total length of the animal as demonstrated in Russell (1967), This erroneously inflated the estimate by 10%. [11] The ilium is rod-like and slender; in M. missouriensis, it is around 1.5 times longer than the femur. Mosasaurus is a genus of mosasaur, carnivorous, aquatic lizards, somewhat resembling flippered crocodiles, with elongated heavy jaws. [112][103][113], In what is now Alabama within the Southern Interior Subprovince, most of the key genera including sharks like Cretoxyrhina and the mosasaurs Clidastes, Tylosaurus, Globidens, Halisaurus, and Platecarpus disappeared and were replaced by Mosasaurus. There is also evidence of aggressive interspecific combat between Mosasaurus and other large mosasaur species. [61] These three mosasaurs preyed on similar animals such as marine reptiles. The genus adapted by accessing new habitats in more open waters. [50] The texture of the bones is virtually identical with in modern whales, which indicates Mosasaurus possessed a high range of aquatic adaptation and neutral buoyancy as seen in cetaceans. M. hoffmannii's low 13C levels reinforces its likely position as an apex predator. IRSNB R27 has two fractures: one had almost fully healed and the other is an open fracture with nearby teeth broken off as a result. [9][50][61], A study published in 2013 by Schulp and colleagues specifically tested how mosasaurs such as M. hoffmannii and P. saturator were able to coexist in the same localities through 13C analysis. [40], The fifth species M. beaugei was described by Camille Arambourg in 1952 from isolated teeth originating from phosphate deposits in the Oulad Abdoun Basin and the Ganntour Basin in Morocco. The latter rendered Mosasaurus paraphyletic (an unnatural grouping), but Bell (1997) nevertheless recognized Plotosaurus as a distinct genus. bite force of a liger is 900. There are two finely ulcerated scratches on the bone callus, which may have developed as part of the healing process. [85] M. sp. At least two species of Mosasaurus have been described, but the true number of species is unknown as remains are often fragmentary and specimens are described in open nomenclature. [29] The rest of the skull had been discovered earlier by a fur-trapper, and it eventually came under the possession of prince Maximilian of Weid-Neuwied between 1832 and 1834. They were described by Dollo in later papers. [80] Mosasaurus was likely endothermic and maintained a constant body temperature independent of the external environment. [16] The skull became part of Cuvier's first speculations about the conception of extinction, which later led to his theory of catastrophism, a precursor to the theory of evolution. M. hoffmannii and Prognathodon sectorius were the dominant species in the northern province. Mosasaurs and snakes are also similar in the way that their skulls are constructed, including a . Together with the formation of a nutrient-rich deepwater mass from the mixing of continental freshwater, Arctic waters from the north, and warmer saline Tethyan waters from the south, this created a warm and productive seaway that supported a rich diversity of marine life. These species include one comparable with M. lemonnieri, and another that appears to be closely related to M. The Mediterranean Tethys during the Maastrichtian stage was located in what is now Europe, Africa, and the Middle East. [50] The species likely hunted near the ocean surface as an ambush predator, using its large two-dimensionally adapted eyes to more effectively spot and capture prey. In contrast, the frontal and parietal bones, which in modern lizards connect to form a flexible pivot point, overlap in the skull of M. hoffmannii. mokoroa, M. hobetsuensis, M. flemingi, and M. prismaticusto be possibly valid, pending a future formal reassessment. [7] Second, the studies relied on an unclean and shaky taxonomy of the Mosasaurus genus due to the lack of a clear holotype diagnosis, which may have been behind the genus's paraphyletic status. hoffmannii. [38][71][74], One of the earliest relevant attempts at an evolutionary study of Mosasaurus was done by Russell in 1967. In 2004, Lingham-Soliar observed that if these injuries were indeed the result of an intraspecific attack, then there is a pattern of them concentrating in the skull region. Spaces within the braincase for the occipital lobe and cerebral hemisphere are narrow and shallow, suggesting such brain parts were relatively small. [30], Mosasaurus was a type of derived mosasaur, or a latecoming member with advanced evolutionary traits such as a fully aquatic lifestyle. The foramina along the snout form a pattern similar to the foramina in Clidastes skulls. 1 mo. In terms of offensive powers, the mosasaurus and the liopleurodon are closely matched. The fossil was delivered to Georg August Goldfuss in Bonn for research, who published a study in 1845. Rather than being fused together, extensive cartilage likely connected the ribs with the sternum, which would have facilitated breathing movements and compression when in deeper waters. [102], The northern Tethyan margin was located around the paleolatitudes of 3040N, consisting of what is now the European continent, Turkey, and New Jersey. Second, the species was overshadowed by the more famous and history-rich type species. Mosasaurs with lower 13C values tended to occupy higher trophic levels, and one factor for this was dietary: a diet of prey rich in lipids such as sea turtles and other large marine reptiles can lower 13C values. [75], The following cladogram on the left (Topology A) is modified from a maximum clade credibility tree inferred by a Bayesian analysis in the most recent major phylogenetic analysis of the Mosasaurinae subfamily by Madzia & Cau (2017), which was self-described as a refinement of a larger study by Simes et al. [131], M. hoffmannii fossils have been found within the K-Pg boundary itself in southeastern Missouri between the Paleocene Clayton Formation and Cretaceous Owl Creek Formation. [9], Interactive skeletal reconstruction of M. hoffmannii It was approximated that it took the odontoblasts 511 days and dentin 233 days to develop to the extent observed in the tooth. [n][o][38] However, Russell used an early method of phylogenetics and did not use cladistics. At the time, it was not believed that a species could go extinct, and fossils of animals were often interpreted as some form of an extant species. Extensive amounts of bone reparative tissue were also present, suggesting the infection and subsequent healing process may have progressed for a few months. [33], The fourth species M. lemonnieri was first detected by Camper Jr. based on fossils from his father's collections, which he discussed with Cuvier during their 1799 correspondence, but Cuvier rejected the idea of another Mosasaurus species. Lingham-Soliar described this pit as resembling a tooth mark from a possible attacking mosasaur. "[14] In a 1822 work by James Parkinson, William Daniel Conybeare coined the genus Mosasaurus from the Latin Mosa "Meuse" and the Ancient Greek (saros, "lizard"), all literally meaning "lizard of the Meuse", in reference to the river where the holotype specimen was discovered nearby. #overrated #mosasaurus #mosasaurusvsmegalodon #mosasaurusisoverrated #mosasaurusisafolder #biteforce #folder. This is significantly higher than the bite force of the largest shark species, the great white shark, which is estimated to be arund 1,950 psi. [102][103][104] The wide range of oceanic climates yielded a large diversity of fauna that coexisted with Mosasaurus. It would have had a stronger bite than something like a Spinosaur, but it's bite force was notably inferior to a similarly sized Tyr. The team then used computer models to reconstruct the dinosaur's jaw muscles and analyze bite performance. There are some other species of mosasaur that specialised in eating this kind of prey so they had stronger bites than Mosasaurus who was a generalist predator so it would take anything that fit into its mouth, not unlike tiger sharks today. Two examples include IRSNB R25 and IRSNB R27, both having fractures and other pathologies in their dentaries. Its four limbs were shaped into robust paddles to steer the animal underwater. 00:00 / 00:00. 241. [77] However, the study used a method unorthodox to traditional phylogenetic studies on mosasaur species because its focus was on the relationships of entire squamate groups rather than mosasaur classification. [16][43], One of the earliest depictions of Mosasaurus in paleoart is a life-size concrete sculpture created by Benjamin Waterhouse Hawkins[44] between 1852 and 1854[45] as part of the collection of sculptures of prehistoric animals on display at the Crystal Palace Park in London. This sort of attack has been compared to the defensive behavior of bottlenose dolphins using their beaks to kill or repel lemon sharks, and it has been speculated that T. bernardi dealt the offensive attack via an ambush on an unsuspecting Mosasaurus. It has been pointed out how 13C can be influenced by other factors in an animal's lifestyle, such as diet and diving behavior. Just one search in the . [74], In 1997, Bell published the first cladistical study of North American mosasaurs. This rigid but highly shock-absorbent structure of the cranium likely allowed a powerful bite force. Tylosaurus was the third new genus of mosasaur to be described from North America behind Clidastes and Platecarpus and the first in Kansas. [11] In 2004, Eric Mulder, Dirk Cornelissen, and Louis Verding suggested M. lemonnieri could be a juvenile form of M. hoffmannii based on the argument that significant differences could be explained by age-based variation. [39] However, the need for more research to confirm any hypotheses of synonymy was expressed. This is one indication of niche partitioning, where the two mosasaur genera likely foraged in different habitats or had different specific diets to coexist without direct competitive conflict. 189K views 1 year ago #Mosasaurus #Megalodon #VS If these ancient aquatic animals fought today, who would win? This concept was revolutionary at the time and helped support the then-developing ideas of extinction. The morphological build of M. hoffmannii, nevertheless, was best adapted for a pelagic surface lifestyle. Fossil evidence suggests Mosasaurus inhabited much of the Atlantic Ocean and the seaways adjacent to it. [36] The premaxillary bar,[e] the long portion of the premaxillary bone extending behind the premaxillary teeth, is narrow and constricts near the middle in M. hoffmannii[50] and M. lemonnieri[36] like in typical mosasaurs. Even the [Tyrannosaurus rex] bite would be puny by comparison. [88][126] To account for this, a 2014 study by T. Lynn Harrell Jr. and Alberto Perez-Huerta examined the concentration ratios of neodymium, gadolinium, and ytterbium in M. hoffmannii and Mosasaurus sp. [7] Russell (1967) wrote that the length of the jaw equalled one tenth of the body length in the species. Mosasaurus gave its name to a group of marine lizards - Mosasaurs. But especially compared to those in M. lemonnieri, the pterygoid teeth in M. hoffmannii are relatively small, which indicates ratchet feeding was relatively unimportant to its hunting and feeding. The earliest fossils of Mosasaurus known to science were found as skulls in a chalk quarry near the Dutch city of Maastricht in the late 18th century, which were initially thought to have been the bones of crocodiles or whales. Like most advanced mosasaurs, the tail bends slightly downwards as it approached the center, but this bend is offset from the dorsal plane at a small degree. The teeth were largely consistent in size and shape with only minor differences throughout the jaws (homodont) except for the smaller pterygoid teeth. Various partial skeletons of M. conodon, M. hoffmannii, and M. missouriensis suggest M. conodon likely had up to thirty-six dorsal vertebrae and nine pygal vertebrae; M. hoffmannii had likely up to thirty-two dorsal vertebrae and ten pygal vertebrae;[i][11][36] and M. missouriensis around thirty-three dorsal vertebrae, eleven pygal vertebrae, and at least seventy-nine caudal vertebrae. In M. hoffmannii, the top margin of the dentary is slightly curved upwards;[5] this is also the case with the largest specimens of M. lemonnieri, although more typical skulls of the species have a near-perfectly straight jawline. [7][13], In 1804, the Lewis and Clark Expedition discovered a now-lost fossil skeleton alongside the Missouri River, which was identified as a 45-foot (14m) long fish. [d][50] No explicit justification for the 1:10 ratio was provided in Russell (1967),[38] and it has been considered to be probably overestimated by Cleary et al. Megalodon is coming into the ring with a brutal bite force of 275,000 kPa. Mosasaurs (from Latin Mosa meaning the ' Meuse ', and Greek sauros meaning 'lizard') comprise a group of extinct, large marine reptiles from the Late Cretaceous. Fossil vertebrae from the layer were found with fractures formed after death. [61] Lingham-Soliar (1995) suggested that Mosasaurus had a rather "savage" feeding behavior as demonstrated by large tooth marks on scutes of the giant sea turtle Allopleuron hoffmanni and fossils of re-healed fractured jaws in M. [42] One indeterminate specimen of Mosasaurus similar to M. conodon from the Pembina Gorge State Recreation Area in North Dakota was found to have an unusual count of sixteen pterygoid teeth, far greater than in known species. As such, it had a streamlined body, an elongated tail ending with a downturn supporting a two-lobed fin, and two pairs of flippers. [38][55] He also measured the dimensions of IRSNB 3119 and recorded that the skull constituted approximately one-eleventh of the whole body. [c][25], The type specimen of M. missouriensis was first described in 1834 by Richard Harlan based on a snout fragment found along the river's Big Bend. [5][50] In M. hoffmannii, this snout is blunt,[5] while in M. lemonnieri it is pointed. The two mosasaurs Mosasaurus and Prognathodon appear to have been the dominant taxa, being widespread and ecologically diversified throughout the seaway. The models suggest that an adult T. rex was capable of a maximum bite force of 35,000 to . The exact year is not fully certain due to multiple contradicting claims. 1 / 5. 15. r/Paleontology. [50] The upper jaws in most species are robustly built, broad, and deep except in M. conodon, where they are slender. 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