Genus
Valid Extinct

Aegirosaurus

Bardet and Fernandez 2000

Aegirosaurus is an extinct genus of platypterygiine ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaurs known from the late Jurassic and early Cretaceous of Europe. It was originally named as a species of Ichthyosaurus.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
3
Group
Ichtyosaures
Carnivore nektonic Marine
Aegirosaurus
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Fossil of Macropterygius, an extinct reptile-- © Ghedoghedo · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia
PBDB ↗ Wikipedia ↗
Classification
Ichthyosauria Unranked clade
›
Baracromia Unranked clade
›
Ophthalmosauridae Family
›
Platypterygiinae Subfamily
›
Aegirosaurus Genus
Measurements
Length
2 m ⓘ
Fossil sites 3 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇩🇪 Germany
2
🇫🇷 France
1
Geological formations
Solnhofen
2
Temporal distribution
Valanginian (137.05–132.6 Ma)
1
Tithonian (149.2–143.1 Ma)
2
Species (3)
Aegirosaurus leptospondylus 149 Ma
Macropterygius posthumus subjective synonym of Aegirosaurus leptospondylus 149 Ma
Macropterygius trigonus subjective synonym of Aegirosaurus leptospondylus 149 Ma
News 2
Remarkable Fossil Reveals the Diet of a Late Jurassic Ichthyosaur
Germany Jurassic Late Jurassic fossil specimen +4
Scientists studying the newly described ichthyosaur Jabalisaurus tethyensis have gained a remarkable insight into its diet. A beautifully preserved fossil from southern Germany contains evidence of the animal's last meals. In addition, the specimen preserves important details of the skeleton and body outline. The fossil, specimen number JME-SOS-08369, was previously assigned to Aegirosaurus. However, researchers
24/08/2026 everythingdinosaur
A New Late Jurassic Ichthyosaur from the German Plattenkalk Deposits
Germany Jurassic Late Jurassic Tithonian fossil +4
Scientists have described a new species of Jurassic ichthyosaur from southern Germany. The new species named Jabalisaurus tethyensis, lived around 149 million years ago during the Late Jurassic (Tithonian faunal stage). Remarkably, some fossils assigned to Jabalisaurus tethyensis had previously been classified as Aegirosaurus. The research highlights the hidden diversity of ichthyosaurs in the famous
17/08/2026 everythingdinosaur
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
N. Bardet and M. Fernandez. 2000. A new ichthyosaur from the Upper Jurassic lithographic limestones of Bavaria. Journal of Paleontology 74(3):503-511 DOI ↗
Bibliography (2)
V. Fischer, A. Clement, and M. Guiomar, P. Godefroit. 2011. The first definite record of a Valanginian ichthyosaur and its implications on the evolution of post-Liassic Ichthyosauria. Cretaceous Research 32:155-163 DOI ↗
N. Bardet and M. Fernandez. 2000. A new ichthyosaur from the Upper Jurassic lithographic limestones of Bavaria. Journal of Paleontology 74(3):503-511 DOI ↗