Plioplatecarpine
| Plioplatecarpinae Temporal range: Late Cretaceous 89.3–66 Ma |
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| Skeleton cast of Platecarpus tympaniticus. | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Superfamily: | †Mosasauroidea |
| Family: | †Mosasauridae |
| (unranked): | †Russellosaurina |
| Subfamily: |
†Plioplatecarpinae Dollo, 1884; Williston, 1897 |
| Genera | |
The Plioplatecarpinae are a subfamily of mosasaurs, a diverse group of Late Cretaceous marine squamates. Members of the subfamily are informally and collectively known as "plioplatecarpines" and have been recovered from all continents, though the occurrences in Australia remain questionable. The subfamily includes the genera Latoplatecarpus, Platecarpus, Plioplatecarpus and Plesioplatecarpus.
Plioplatecarpines were small to medium-sized mosasaurs that were comparatively fast and agile compared to mosasaurs of other subfamilies. The first plioplatecarpines appear in the Turonian and are among the oldest of mosasaurs, and the clade persists throughout the Maastrichtian, a period of approximately 24 million years. The subfamily was seemingly heavily affected during a poorly understood middle-Campanian mosasaur extinction event and its genera appear to have faced competition from mosasaurine mosasaurs during the Maastrichtian, leading to a decline in numbers and in diversity.
The etymology of this group derives from the genus Plioplatecarpus (Greek pleion = "more" + Greek plate = "oar" + Greek karpos = "wrist, carpus").
In general, plioplatecarpines were short-skulled, short-bodied forms and were among the strongest swimming mosasaurs. Some workers have likened them to pinnipeds in their agility. Most forms were likely piscivores ("fish eaters"), though cephalopods (belemnites) evidently formed an important part of the plioplatecarpine diet. Larger forms may have also fed upon smaller marine reptiles. At least one genus evolved sturdy crushing teeth adapted to feeding on shellfish. The plioplatecarpines were medium-sized mosasaurs ranging from around 2.5 to 7.5 meters in length.
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Wikipedia