Genus
Valid Extinct

Peloneustes

Lydekker 1889

Peloneustes is a genus of pliosaurid plesiosaur from the Middle Jurassic of England. Its remains are known from the Peterborough Member of the Oxford Clay Formation, which is Callovian in age. It was originally described as a species of Plesiosaurus by palaeontologist Harry Govier Seeley in 1869, before being given its own genus by naturalist Richard Lydekker in 1889. While many species have been assigned to this genus, P. philarchus is currently the only one still considered valid, with the others moved to different genera, considered nomina dubia, or synonymised with P. philarchus. The taxon is known from many specimens, including some very complete material.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
12
Group
Sauroptérygiens
Carnivore nektonic Marine
Peloneustes
click to enlarge
Paddle of the British Jurassic pliosaurid plesiosaur Eardasaurus housed at the Oxford University Natural History Museum. © the paleobear · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia
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PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Sauropterygia Suborder
›
Plesiosauria Order
›
Pliosauroidea Superfamily
›
Pliosauridae Family
›
Thalassophonea Unranked clade
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Peloneustes Genus
Measurements
Length
3,5 m ⓘ
Fossil sites 12 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
9
🇫🇷 France
2
🇩🇪 Germany
1
Geological formations
Oxford Clay
10
Argiles de Montaubert
1
Ornatenton
1
Temporal distribution
Callovian (165.3–161.5 Ma)
12
Species (1)
Peloneustes philarchus 165 Ma
Images 11
Bibliography
Original description
R. Lydekker. 1889. On the remains and affinities of five genera of Mesozoic reptiles. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London 45:41-59 DOI ↗
Bibliography (9)
H. F. Ketchum and R. B. J. Benson. 2011. The cranial anatomy and taxonomy of Peloneustes philarchus (Sauropterygia, Pliosauridae) from the Peterborough Member (Callovian, Middle Jurassic) of the United Kingdom. Palaeontology 54(3):639-665 DOI ↗
R. Araujo, A. S. Smith, and J. Liston. 2008. Alfred Leeds fossil vertebrate collection of the National Museum of Ireland - Natural History. Irish Journal of Earth Sciences 26:17-32 DOI ↗
S. Sachs. 1997. Mesozoische Reptilien aus Nordrhein-Westfalen [Mesozoic reptiles from Nordrhein-Westfalen]. In S. Sachs, O. W. M. Rauhut, & A. Weigert (eds.), Terra Nostra. 1. Treffen der deutschsprachigen Paläoherpetologen Düsseldorf
H.-E. Sauvage. 1914. Catalogue des Reptiles Jurassiques du Boulonnais [Catalogue of Jurassic reptiles from the Boulonnais]. Bulletin de la société Academique de l'Arrondissement de Boulogne-sur-Mer 10:253-264
C. W. Andrews. 1913. A Descriptive Catalogue of the Marine Reptiles of the Oxford Clay. Based on the Leeds Collection in the British Museum (Natural History), London. Part II DOI ↗
G. von Arthaber. 1906. Beiträge zur Kenntnis der Organisation und der Anpassungserscheinungen des genus Metriorhynchus. Beiträge zur Paläontologie und Geologie Österreich-Ungarns und des Orients 19(4):287-320
R. Lydekker. 1889. On the remains and affinities of five genera of Mesozoic reptiles. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London 45:41-59 DOI ↗
R. Lydekker. 1889. Catalogue of the Fossil Reptilia and Amphibia, Part II. Containing the orders Ichthyopterygia and Sauropterygia DOI ↗
H. G. Seeley. 1869. Index to the Fossil Remains of Aves, Ornithosauria, and Reptilia, from the Secondary System of Strata, Arranged in the Woodwardian Museum of the University of Cambridge. Deighton, Bell, and Co, Cambridge DOI ↗