Trinacromerum

Try-nah-kro-me-rum.
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Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Trinacromerum ‭(‬Three tipped femur‭)‬.

Phonetic

Try-nah-kro-me-rum.

Named By

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Sauropterygia,‭ Plesiosauria. Polycotylidae.

Diet

Piscivore/Carnivore.

Species

T.‭ ‬bentonianum‭

Size

3‭ ‬meters long.

Known locations

Canada‭ ‬-‭ ‬Manitoba.‭ ‬USA‭ ‬-‭ ‬Colorado,‭ ‬Kansas,‭ ‬Texas and Utah.

Time Period

Cenomanian to Turonian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Multiple individuals.

In Depth

       Although not as well-known as its more famous relative Dolichorhynchops,‭ ‬Trinacromerum remains one of the best represented polycotylid plesiosaurs in the fossil record.‭ ‬Like its relatives,‭ ‬Trinacromerum was a plesiosaur but one with‭ ‬a much shorter neck and elongated jaws filled with thin needle like teeth.‭ ‬Living in the Western Interior Seaway of the late Cretaceous,‭ ‬Trinacromerum was a predator of fish that used speed and manoeuvrability to capture its prey.‭ ‬In turn Trinacromerum would have likely been targeted by other predators with possible candidates including large pliosaurs such as Brachauchenius.

Further Reading

– A plesiosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of Manitoba. – Journal of Paleontology 9(5):385-389. – L. S. Russel – 1935.

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