Genus
Valid Extinct

Dolichorhynchops

Williston 1902

Dolichorhynchops is an extinct genus of polycotylid plesiosaur from the Late Cretaceous of North America, containing the species D. osborni and D. herschelensis, with two previous species having been assigned to new genera. Definitive specimens of D. osborni have been found in the late Coniacian to early Campanian rocks, while those of D. herschelensis have been found in the late Campanian to early Maastrichtian rocks. Dolichorhynchops was a relatively small plesiosaur, measuring around 3 metres (9.8 ft) long. Its Greek generic name means "long-nosed face".

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
14
Group
Sauroptérygiens
Carnivore aquatic, depth=surface Marine
Dolichorhynchops
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Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Sauropterygia Suborder
›
Plesiosauria Order
›
Plesiosauroidea Superfamily
›
Polycotylidae Family
›
Polycotylinae Subfamily
›
Dolichorhynchia Unranked clade
›
Dolichorhynchops Genus
Measurements
Length
3 m ⓘ
Fossil sites 14 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇺🇸 United States
8
🇨🇦 Canada
3
🇵🇱 Poland
2
🇷🇺 Russia
1
Geological formations
Niobrara
4
Pierre Shale
3
Mesaverde
2
Bearpaw Shale
1
Temporal distribution
Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)
7
Santonian (85.7–83.6 Ma)
2
Coniacian (89.8–85.7 Ma)
2
Turonian (93.9–89.8 Ma)
3
Species (5)
Dolichorhynchops herschelensis 84 Ma
Dolichorhynchops osborni 94 Ma
Plesiosaurus ichthyospondylus nomen vanum, species not entered Dolichorhynchops 94 Ma
Polycotylus osborni subjective synonym of Dolichorhynchops osborni 94 Ma
Trinacromerum latimanus nomen vanum, species not entered Dolichorhynchops
Synonyms (2)
Plesiosaurus ichthyospondylus nomen vanum, species not entered Dolichorhynchops
Trinacromerum latimanus nomen vanum, species not entered Dolichorhynchops
Images 2
Bibliography
Original description
S. W. Williston. 1902. Restoration of Dolichorhynchops osborni, a new Cretaceous plesiosaur. Kansas University Science Bulletin 1(9):241-244
Bibliography (9)
T. Sato, X.-C. Wu, and A. Tirabasso, P. Bloskie. 2011. Braincase of a polycotylid plesiosaur (Reptilia: Sauropterygia) from the Upper Cretaceous of Manitoba, Canada. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 31(2):313-329 DOI ↗
D. G. DeMar and B. H. Breithaupt. 2008. Terrestrial and aquatic vertebrate paleocommunities of the Mesaverde Formation (Upper Cretaceous, Campanian) of the Wind River and Bighorn Basins, Wyoming, USA. Vertebrate Microfossil Assemblages: Their Role in Paleoecology and Paleobiogeography
F. R. O'Keefe. 2008. Cranial anatomy and taxonomy of Dolichorhynchops bonneri new combination, a polycotylid (Sauropteryga: Plesiosauria) from the Pierre Shale of Wyoming and South Dakota. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28(3):664-676 DOI ↗
D. G. DeMar, Jr. and B. H. Breithaupt. 2006. The nonmammalian vertebrate microfossil assemblages of the Mesaverde Formation (Upper Cretaceous, Campanian) of the Wind River and Bighorn Basins, Wyoming. Late Cretaceous Vertebrates from the Western Interior. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin 35:33-54
T. Sato. 2005. A new polycotylid plesiosaur (Reptilia: Sauropterygia) from the Upper Cretaceous Bearpaw Formation in Saskatchewan, Canada. Journal of Paleontology 79(5):969-980 DOI ↗
K. Carpenter. 1996. A review of short-necked plesiosaurs of the Western Interior, North America. Neues Jahrbuch fur Geologie und Palaontologie, Abhandlungen 201(2):259-287 DOI ↗
D. A. Russell. 1967. Cretaceous vertebrates from the Anderson River N. W. T. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 4(1):21-38 DOI ↗
S. W. Williston. 1902. Restoration of Dolichorhynchops osborni, a new Cretaceous plesiosaur. Kansas University Science Bulletin 1(9):241-244
H. Schröder. 1885. Saurierreste aus der baltischen oberen Kreide [Saurian remains from the Baltic Upper Cretaceous]. Jahrbuch der Königlich Preussischen geologischen Landesanstalt und Bergakademie zu Berlin 1884:293-333