Genus
Valid Extinct

Ectenosaurus

Russell 1967

Ectenosaurus is an extinct genus of marine lizard belonging to the mosasaur family. It is classified as part of the Plioplatecarpinae subfamily alongside genera like Angolasaurus and Platecarpus. Ectenosaurus is known from the Santonian and Campanian of Kansas, Alabama, and Texas.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
5
Group
Mosasaures
Carnivore aquatic Terrestrial
Ectenosaurus
click to enlarge
PLoS ONE 6 (11): e27343. © Johan Lindgren, Michael J. Everhart, and Michael W. Caldwell · CC BY 2.5 · Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Mosasauridae Family
›
Plioplatecarpinae Subfamily
›
Ectenosaurus Genus
Fossil sites 5 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇺🇸 United States
5
Geological formations
Niobrara
3
Pen
1
Mooreville Chalk
1
Temporal distribution
Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)
2
Santonian (85.7–83.6 Ma)
2
Coniacian (89.8–85.7 Ma)
1
Species (4)
Ectenosaurus clidastoides 90 Ma
Ectenosaurus shannoni 84 Ma
Ectenosaurus tlemonectes 90 Ma
Platecarpus oxyrhinus subjective synonym of Ectenosaurus clidastoides 90 Ma
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
D. A. Russell. 1967. Systematics and morphology of American mosasaurs (Reptilia, Sauria). Bulletin of the Peabody Museum of Natural History 23:1-252
Bibliography (4)
C. R. Kiernan and J. A. Ebersole. 2023. Two new plioplatecarpine mosasaurs (Mosasauridae; Plioplatecarpinae) of the genus Ectenosaurus from the Upper Cretaceous of North America. PaleoBios 40(13):1-28 DOI ↗
G. L. Bell Jr., K. R. Barnes, and M. J. Polcyn. 2013. Late Cretaceous mosasauroids (Reptilia, Squamata) of the Big bend region in Texas, USA. Earth and Environmental Science Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 103:571-581 DOI ↗
J. Lindgren, M. J. Everhart, and M. W. Caldwell. 2011. Three-dimensionally preserved integument reveals hydrodynamic adaptations in the extinct marine lizard Ectenosaurus (Reptilia, Mosasauridae). PLoS One 6(11):e27343 DOI ↗
M. J. Everhart. 2004. Late Cretaceous interaction between predators and prey. Evidence of feeding by two species of shark on a mosasaur. PalArch 1(1):1-7