Ancient Marine Reptiles

During the Age of Dinosaurs, the oceans of the world teemed with reptile versions of whales, dolphins, and seals. Just as dinosaurs disappeared, these bizarre non-mammalian marine vertebrates became extinct, many at the close of the Cretaceous period. This book reviews and summarises many recent discoveries by leading palaeontologists.

M.A. Taylor, Foreword. Ichthyosauria: J.M. Callaway, Introduction. P.M. Sander, The paleobiogeography of Shastasaurus. J.M. Callaway, A New Look at Mixosaurus. C. McGowan, A Transitional Ichthyosaur Fauna. R. Motani, Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Tooth Implantation in Ichthyosaurs. Sauropterygia: O.C. Rieppel, Introduction. O.C. Rieppel and H. Hagdorn, Paleobiology of Middle Triassic Sauropterygia in Central and Western Europe. G.W. Storrs, Morphologic and Taxonomic Clarification of the Genus Plesiosaurus. K. Carpenter, Comparative Cranial Anatomy of Two North American Cretaceous Plesiosaurs. Testudines: E.L. Nicholls, Introduction. R. Hirayama, Distribution and Diversity of Cretaceous Chelonoids. D.K. Elliott, G.V. Irby, and J.H. Hutchison, Desmatochelys Iowa, a Marine Turtle from the Upper Cretaceous. R.T.J. Moody, The Paleogeography of Marine and Coastal Turtles of the North Atlantic and Trans-Saharan Regions. Mosasauridae: G.L. Bell, Jr., Introduction. G.L. Bell, Jr., Phylogenetic Revision of North American and Adriatic Mosasauridea. A. Sheldon, Ecological Implications of Mosasaur Bone Microstructure. Crocodylia: S. Hua and E. Buffetaut, Introduction. R.K. Denton, Jr., J.L. Dobie, and D.C. Parris, The Marine Crocodile, Hyposaurus, in North America. Faunas, Behavior, and Evolution: J.A. Massare, Introduction. S.G. Lucas, Marine Reptiles and Mesozoic Biochronology. Z. Gasparini and M. Fernandez, Tithonian Marine Reptiles of the Eastern Pacific. R. Collin and C.M. Janis, Morphological Constraints on Tetropod Feeding Mechanisms: Why Were There No Suspenion-Feeding Marine Reptiles? R.L. Carroll, Mesozoic Marine Reptiles as Models of Long Term, Large-Scale Evolutionary Phenomena. Subject Index.