Genus
Valid Extinct

Leptonectes

McGowan 1996

Leptonectes is a genus of ichthyosaur that lived in the Late Triassic to Early Jurassic. Fossils have been found in Belgium, Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom. A possible specimen from Switzerland first reported in 2006, has been reclassified as that of Hauffiopteryx. The type species, L. tenuirostris, reached 4 metres (13 ft) long, whereas L. moorei likely reached 3 metres (9.8 ft) long; the largest species, L. solei, was approximately 5–6 metres (16–20 ft) long.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
12
Group
Ichtyosaures
Carnivore nektonic Marine
Leptonectes
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Leptopterygius NHM © the paleobear · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Ichthyosauria Unranked clade
›
Parvipelvia Unranked clade
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Neoichthyosauria Unranked clade
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Leptonectes Genus
Fossil sites 12 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
8
🇦🇹 Austria
1
🇨🇭 Switzerland
1
🇧🇪 Belgium
1
🇩🇪 Germany
1
Geological formations
Blue Lias
2
Charmouth Mudstone
2
Kössener Schichten
1
Ethe
1
Posidonia Shale
1
Temporal distribution
Toarcian (184.2–174.7 Ma)
1
Pliensbachian (192.9–184.2 Ma)
5
Sinemurian (199.5–192.9 Ma)
3
Hettangian (201.4–199.5 Ma)
2
Rhaetian (205.7–201.4 Ma)
1
Species (7)
Ichthyosaurus strongylostinus subjective synonym of Leptonectes tenuirostris 201 Ma
Leptonectes moorei 193 Ma
Leptonectes solei 200 Ma
Leptonectes tenuirostris 201 Ma
Leptopterygius amalthei
Leptopterygius margaritatus nomen dubium, species not entered Leptonectes
Leptopterygius numismalis
Synonyms (2)
Leptopterygius subjective synonym of Leptonectes
Leptopterygius margaritatus nomen dubium, species not entered Leptonectes
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
M. W. Maisch and A. G. Reisdorf. 2006. Evidence for the longest stratigraphic range of a post-Triassic Ichthyosaur: a Leptonectes tenuirostris from the Pliensbachian (Lower Jurassic) of Switzerland. Geobios 39:491-505 DOI ↗
Bibliography (9)
D. Lomax and J. A. Massare. 2012. The first reported Leptonectes (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) with associated embryos, from Somerset, England. Paludicola 8(4):263-267
A. S. Smith and J. D. Radley. 2007. A marine reptile fauna from the Early Jurassic Saltford Shale (Blue Lias Formation) of Central England. Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society 56(4):253-260 DOI ↗
M. W. Maisch and A. G. Reisdorf. 2006. Evidence for the longest stratigraphic range of a post-Triassic Ichthyosaur: a Leptonectes tenuirostris from the Pliensbachian (Lower Jurassic) of Switzerland. Geobios 39:491-505 DOI ↗
P. M. Sander. 2000. Ichthyosauria: their diversity, distribution and phylogeny. Palaeontologische Zeitschrift 74(1/2):1-35 DOI ↗
C. McGowan and A. C. Milner. 1999. A new Pliensbachian Ichthyosaur from Dorset, England. Palaeontology 42(5):761-768 DOI ↗
C. McGowan. 1993. A new species of large, long-snouted ichthyosaur from the English lower Lias. Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 30:1197-1204 DOI ↗
P. Godefroit. 1992. Présence de Leptopterygius tenuirostris (Reptilia, Ichthyosauria) dans le Lias moyen de Lorraine belge. Bulletin de l'Institut Royal des Sciences Naturelles de Belgique, Sciences de la Terre 62:163-170
C. McGowan. 1989. Leptopterygius tenuirostris and other long-snouted ichthyosaurs from the English Lower Lias. Palaeontology 32(3):409-427
H. Zapfe. 1976. Ein großer Ichthyosaurier aus den Kössener Schichten der Nordalpen. Annalen des Naturhistorischen Museums in Wien 80:239-250