- Stenopterygius
Taxobox
name = "Stenopterygius"
fossil_range = Early to MidJurassic
image_width = 250px
image_caption = "Stenopterygius quadriscissus" from the Early Jurassic of Germany
regnum =Animal ia
phylum =Chordata
classis =Sauropsida
ordo =Ichthyosauria
familia =Stenopterygiidae
genus = "Stenopterygius"
genus_authority = Jaekel, 1904
subdivision_ranks =Species
subdivision =
*"S. quadriscissus" (Von Quenstadt, 1858) Jaekel, 1904 (Type species )
*"S. longifrons" (Owen, 1881) Von Huene, 1939
*"S. megalorhius" Von Huene, 1922
*"S. hauffianus" Von Huene, 1922"Stenopterygius" is an extinct genus of
ichthyosaur from the Early to MiddleJurassic (Toarcian -Aalenian ) fromEurope (England ,France ,Germany andLuxembourg ). Maximum length was 4 m.Maisch MW, Matzke AT. 2000. The Ichthyosauria. "Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie)" 298: 1-159]Palaeobiology
"Stenopterygius" was physically similar to the better known "
Ichthyosaurus ", but had a smallerskull and narrower flippers. Beautifully preservedfossil s of "Stenopterygius" have been found inGermany . Its skull was extended into a kind of a beak and was armed with a quantity of large teeth. The limbs had been transformed to fin-like structures. The tail terminated in a large, semicircular, leathery, verticalcaudal fin and even a triangulardorsal fin was present.The habits of "Stenopterygius" were similar to those of present-day dolphins. It spent most of its life in the open sea, where it hunted fish,
cephalopod s and other animals. The abdominal cavity of skeletons of this ichthyosaur often contains the remains of such food.One famous fossil is that of a mother and baby that died in
childbirth (ichthyosaurs wereviviparous ). This proved that ichthyosaur infants were born tail-first, just likecetacea ns, to prevent them from drowning before fully clearing the birth canal.References
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