Clidastes
Clidastes is an extinct genus of mosasaur from marine environments of the late Cretaceous.[1] It was an agile and fast swimmer which cruised the surface or shallow waters hunting for prey.
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| Skeleton formerly referred to C. liodontus | |
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| Genus: | Clidastes Cope, 1868
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Clidastes was one of the smallest of the mosasaurs, averaging 2–4 meters (6.6–13.1 ft) in length, with the largest specimens reaching 6.2 meters (20 feet) long. It had a delicate, slim form with an expansion near the tip of the tail. This enabled it to chase down the fastest of prey.
Clidastes Media
- Clidastes proph1DB.jpg
Clidastes prophyton
Illustration of a Clidastes forelimb from The Osteology of the Reptiles by Samuel Wendell Williston (1925).
Clidastes skull from The Osteology of the Reptiles by Samuel Wendell Williston (1925).
Restoration of three C. propython
Size comparison of a specimen of C. propython formerly assigned to the now invalid C. velox
Fossil cast of a Clidastes propython skeleton next to some ammonite models at the North American Museum of Ancient Life.
Specimen formerly assigned to C. velox
References
- ↑ Cope E.D. 1869. On the reptilian orders, Pythonomorpha and Streptosauria. Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural History 12: 250–266.