Crymocetus

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Extinct genus of reptiles

title: "Crymocetus" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["late-cretaceous-plesiosaurs-of-europe", "fossil-taxa-described-in-1869", "taxa-named-by-edward-drinker-cope"] description: "Extinct genus of reptiles" topic_path: "general/late-cretaceous-plesiosaurs-of-europe" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crymocetus" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Extinct genus of reptiles ::

| fossil_range = | image = Crymocetus.jpg | image_caption = Holotype vertebra | taxon = Crymocetus | authority = Cope, 1869 | synonyms =

  • Cimoliasaurus bernardi Lydekker, 1889
  • Plesiosaurus bernardi Owen, 1850 | type_species = Crymocetus bernardi | type_species_authority = Cope, 1869

Crymocetus (meaning "cold sea monster") is an extinct genus of Reptilia from the Late Cretaceous Chalk Group of Sussex, England. It is only known from the type species, which is C. bernardi.

Discovery and naming

The holotype consists of a single posterior cervical vertebra which was discovered in the Chalk Group in Sussex, England. It was first named as Plesiosaurus bernardi by Owen (1850). However, Cope (1869) re-studied the holotype and decided that P. bernardi warranted its own genus, which he named Crymocetus.

After Cope (1869) was published, nearly all subsequent authors tended to disregard the name Crymocetus, with Lydekker (1889) synonymising Crymocetus with Cimoliasaurus.

In any case, Crymocetus is in need of restudy along with other plesiosaurs from the Cretaceous deposits of England.

Classification

Cope (1869) initially classified Crymocetus within Elasmosauridae, while Welles (1962) and Persson (1963) instead considered Crymocetus to be either a member of the Pliosauridae or Rhomaleosauridae. Crymocetus is today classified within Plesiosauria incertae sedis.

References

References

  1. A. S. Romer. (1966). Vertebrate Paleontology, 3rd edition 1-468.
  2. Owen, R., (1850), Description of the Fossil Reptiles of the Chalk Formation.
  3. E. D. Cope. (1869). On the reptilian orders Pythonomorpha and Streptosauria. ''Proceedings of the Boston Society of Natural History'' 12:251-266
  4. Lydekker., R., (1889), Catalogue of the fossil Reptilia and Amphibia in the British Museum (Natural History). Part II. Containing the orders Ichthyopterygia and Sauropterygia: ''London, Printed by Order of the Trustees of the British Museum'', p. 307pp.
  5. Welles, S. P., (1962), A new Species of Elasmosaur from the Aptian of Colombia and a review of the Cretaceous Plesiosaurs: ''University of California Publications Bulletin Department of Geological Sciences'', v. 44, p. 1-89.
  6. Perrson, P. O., (1963), A revision of the classification of the Plesiosauria with a synopsis of the Stratigraphical and geographical distribution of the Group: ''Lunds Universitets Arksskrift''. N. F. Avd. 2, band 59, n 1, p. 60.

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