Aigialosaurus

Ay-gee-al-oh-sore-us.
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Name

Aigialosaurus.

Phonetic

Ay-gee-al-oh-sore-us.

Named By

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Squamata,‭ ‬Varanoidea,‭ ‬Aigialosauridae.

Diet

Carnivore.

Species

A.‭ ‬dalmaticus‭ (‬type‭)‬,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬bucchichi,‭ ‬A.‭ ‬novaki‭ ‬

Size

Around‭ ‬1.1‭ ‬meters long.

Known locations

Croatia.

Time Period

Cenomanian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Several specimens.

In Depth

       Aigialosaurus was a semi aquatic lizard that was developed to enter the water yet still return to land.‭ ‬This is similar to many other lizards at this stage of the Cretaceous that would eventually evolve into the mosauridae,‭ ‬the last major group of marine reptiles that would adapt to ocean life during the Mesozoic.‭

Further Reading

– A redescription of Aigialosaurus (Opetiosaurus) bucchichi (Kornhuber, 1901) (Squamata: Aigialosauridae) with comments on mosasauroid systematics. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 29 (2): 437-452. – Alex R. Dutchak & Michael W. Caldwell – 2009.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT