Mosasaurus is a large group of marine lizards that lived at the end of the Cretaceous period. The largest species could grow up to 18 meters in length.
They dominated the oceans during the late Cretaceous period. Mosasaurus is not a marine dinosaur. According to the Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum, Mosasaurus is a distinct group of reptiles, more closely related to modern snakes and lizards.
Mosasaurus went extinct 65.5 million years ago during the same event that wiped out the dinosaurs. The Philip J. Currie Dinosaur Museum states that the Mosasaurus species is one of the largest members of the Mosasauridae family.
A study published in 2014 in the journal Proceedings of the Zoological Institute RAS indicated that one of the largest specimens ever found was Mosasaurus hoffmanni.
Mosasaurus were apex predators and can be compared to modern killer whales. Meanwhile, some species adapted to feed on shelled animals, similar to otters.
- Halisaurus arambourgi: Length 4-5m; lived 66-86 million years ago.
- Plioplatecarpus marshi: Length 4-5m; lived 68-73 million years ago.
- Globidens dakotennis: Length 5-6m; lived 66-84 million years ago.
- Clidastes moorevillensis: Length 6m; lived 70-88 million years ago.
- Pannoniasaurus inexpectatus: Length 6m; lived 83-85 million years ago.
- Plesiotylosaurus crassidens: Length 6-7m; lived 69-70 million years ago.
- Prognathodon giganteus: Length 10m; lived 66-83 million years ago.
- Prognathodon waiparaensis: Length 11m; lived 66-83 million years ago.
- Liodon mosasauroides: Length 12m; lived 66-72 million years ago.
- Moanasaurus mangahouangae: Length 12m; lived 66-83 million years ago.
- Taniwhasaurus oweni: Length 12m; lived 66-70 million years ago.
- Prognathodon saturator: Length 13-14m; lived 66-83 million years ago.
- Plotosaurus tuckeri: Length 14m; lived 66-70 million years ago.
- Tylosaurus proriger: Length 15m; lived 75-86 million years ago.
- Mosasaurus hoffmanni: Length 16-17m; lived 66-70 million years ago.
