Genus
Valid Extinct

Martinectes

Clark et al. 2024

Martinectes is an extinct genus of polycotylid plesiosaur from the Late Cretaceous of North America and possibly European Russia. The genus contains a single species M. bonneri, known from multiple skeletons and skulls. Martinectes was historically considered to represent a species of the genus Trinacromerum and later Dolichorhynchops before it was moved to its own genus. It was a large polycotylid measuring at least around 5 metres (16 ft) long.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
3
Group
Sauroptérygiens
Carnivore aquatic, depth=surface Marine
Martinectes
click to enlarge
Skeletal mount of Martinectes bonneri on display at the University of Michigan Museum of Natural History. © Jonathan Chen · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Sauropterygia Suborder
›
Plesiosauria Order
›
Plesiosauroidea Superfamily
›
Polycotylidae Family
›
Polycotylinae Subfamily
›
Dolichorhynchia Unranked clade
›
Martinectes Genus
Fossil sites 3 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇺🇸 United States
3
Geological formations
Pierre Shale
2
Taylor Marl
1
Temporal distribution
Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)
3
Species (1)
Martinectes bonneri 84 Ma
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
R. O. Clark, F. R. O'Keefe, and S. E. Slack. 2024. A new genus of small polycotylid plesiosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of the Western Interior Seaway and a clarification of the genus Dolichorhynchops. Cretaceous Research 157:105812:1-35 DOI ↗
Bibliography (2)
R. O. Clark, F. R. O'Keefe, and S. E. Slack. 2024. A new genus of small polycotylid plesiosaur from the Upper Cretaceous of the Western Interior Seaway and a clarification of the genus Dolichorhynchops. Cretaceous Research 157:105812:1-35 DOI ↗
D. A. Adams. 1997. Trinacromerum bonneri, new species, last and fastest pliosaur of the Western Interior Seaway. Texas Journal of Science 49(3):179-198