List of mosasaur genera

Tylosaurus proriger mounted skeleton in the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center in Woodland Park, Colorado

This list of mosasaurs is a comprehensive listing of all genera that have ever been included in the family Mosasauridae or the parent clade Mosasauroidea, excluding purely vernacular terms. The list includes all commonly accepted genera, but also genera that are now considered invalid, doubtful (nomen dubium), or were not formally published (nomen nudum), as well as junior synonyms of more established names, and genera that are no longer considered mosasauroid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroids shall be noted as such.

Scope and terminology

There is no official, canonical list of mosasaur genera but one of the most thorough attempts can be found on the "Pythonomorpha" section of Mikko Haaramo's Phylogeny Archive.

Naming conventions and terminology follow the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Technical terms used include:

• Junior synonym: A name which describes the same taxon as a previously published name. If two or more genera are formally designated and the type specimens are later assigned to the same genus, the first to be published (in chronological order) is the senior synonym, and all other instances are junior synonyms. Senior synonyms are generally used, except by special decision of the ICZN, but junior synonyms cannot be used again, even if deprecated. Junior synonymy is often subjective, unless the genera described were both based on the same type specimen.
• Nomen nudum (Latin for "naked name"): A name that has appeared in print but has not yet been formally published by the standards of the ICZN. Nomina nuda (the plural form) are invalid, and are therefore not italicized as a proper generic name would be. If the name is later formally published, that name is no longer a nomen nudum and will be italicized on this list. Often, the formally published name will differ from any nomina nuda that describe the same specimen. In this case, these nomina nuda will be deleted from this list in favor of the published name.
• Preoccupied name: A name that is formally published, but which has already been used for another taxon. This second use is invalid (as are all subsequent uses) and the name must be replaced. As preoccupied names are not valid generic names, they will also go unitalicized on this list.
• Nomen dubium (Latin for "dubious name"): A name describing a fossil with no unique diagnostic features. As this can be an extremely subjective and controversial designation, this term is not used on this list.

Mosasaur genera

Genus Authors Year Status Location Notes Acteosaurus Meyer 1860 Valid. Europe Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid.[1] Adriosaurus Seeley 1881 Valid. Europe Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Aigialosaurus Kramberger 1892 Valid. Europe Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Amphekepubis Mehl 1930 Valid. North America Amphorosteus Gibbs 1851 Nomen dubium. North America Nomen dubium. Ancylocentrum Schmidt 1927 Jr. synonym. N/A Junior synonym of Prognathodon. Angolasaurus Telles-Antunes 1964 Valid. Africa Baptosaurus Marsh 1870 Jr. synonym. N/A Junior synonym of Halisaurus. Baseodon Leidy 1865 Nomen dubium. North America Nomen dubium. Batrachiosaurus Harlan 1839 Jr. synonym. N/A Junior synonym of Mosasaurus. Brachysaurana Strand 1928 Jr. synonym. N/A Junior synonym of Prognathodon. Brachysaurus Williston 1897 Preoccupied. N/A Preoccupied by a junior synonym of an iguanian lizard genus, Stenocercus;[2] referred to replacement names Brachysaurana and Ancylocentrum, of which Ancylocentrum has priority as such. Carinodens Woodward 1891 Valid. Africa Europe South America Carsosaurus Kornhuber 1893 Valid. Europe Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Clidastes Cope 1868 Valid. Compressidens Dollo 1924 Preoccupied. Preoccupied by a tusk shell; later renamed Carinodens. Dallasaurus Polcyn Bell 2005 Valid. Dolichosaurus Owen 1894 Valid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Dollosaurus Yakovlev 1901 Disputed. Possible junior synonym of Prognathodon. Ectenosaurus Russel 1967 Valid. Edestosaurus Marsh 1871 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Clidastes. Eidolosaurus Nopcsa 1923 Valid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Elliptonodon Emmons 1858 Nomen dubium. Nomen dubium. Eonatator Bardet Pereda Suberbiola Iarochène Bouya Amaghzaz 2005 Disputed. North America South America Possible junior synonym of Halisaurus. Eremiasaurus[3] Leblanc Caldwell Bardet 2012 Valid. Morocco Type specie is Eremiasaurus heterodontus. Globidens Gilmore 1912 Valid. Goronyosaurus Azzaroli de Guili Ficcarelli Torre 1972 Valid. Haasiasaurus Polcyn Tchernov Jacobs 2003 Valid. Hainosaurus Dollo 1885 Valid. Halisaurus Marsh 1869 Valid. Renamed Baptosaurus Marsh, 1870 when Marsh thought the name was preoccupied by a fish: Halosaurus. Modern rules allow the original. Holcodus Gibbs 1851 Nomen dubium. Nomen dubium, possible junior synonym of Platecarpus Holosaurus Marsh 1880 Preoccupied. Referred to Platecarpus. Hydrosaurus Kornhuber 1873 Preoccupied. Preoccupied by an agamid lizard; renamed Pontosaurus. Igdamanosaurus Zdansky 1935 Valid. Kolposaurus Camp 1942 Preoccupied. Preoccupied by a junior synonym of Nothosaurus,[4] referred to Plotosaurus Komensaurus Caldwell Palci 2007 Valid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Kourisodon Nicholls Meckert 2002 Valid. Lakumasaurus Novas Fernandez Gasparini de Lirio Mumez Puerta 2002 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Taniwhasaurus. Latoplatecarpus[5] Konishi Caldwell 2011 Valid. North America Type species is Latoplatecarpus willistoni. A second species is Latoplatecarpus nichollsae originally described in genus Plioplatecarpus.[6] Leiodon Owen 1841 Preoccupied. Preoccupied by a shark, referred to Liodon. Lesticodus Leidy 1861 Nomen dubium. Nomen dubium. Lestosaurus Marsh 1872 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Platecarpus. Liodon Agassiz 1846 Valid. Macrosaurus Owen 1849 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Halisaurus. Mesoleptos Cornalia 1851 Valid. Putative non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Moanasaurus Wiffen 1980 Valid. Mosasaurus Conybeare 1822 Valid. Nectoportheus Cope 1868 Nomen dubium. Nomen dubium. Opetiosaurus Kornhuber 1901 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Aigialosaurus. Oterognathus Dollo 1889 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Plioplatecarpus. Pannoniasaurus Makádi Caldwell Ősi 2012 Valid. Phosphorosaurus Dollo 1889 Disputed. Junior synonym of Halisaurus. Platecarpus Cope 1869 Valid. Plesioplatecarpus[5] Konishi Caldwell 2011 Valid. North America Type species is Plesioplatecarpus planifrons, originally described in genus Clidastes, and later recombined in Platecarpus. Plesiotylosaurus Camp 1942 Valid. Plioplatecarpus Dollo 1882 Valid. Plotosaurus Camp 1951 Valid. Pluridens Lingham-Sollar 1998 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Halisaurus. Pontosaurus Kornhuber 1873 Valid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Proaigialosaurus Kuhn 1958 Valid. Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Prognathodon Dollo 1889 Valid. Prognathosaurus Dollo 1889 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Prognathodon. Pterycollosaurus Dollo 1882 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Mosasaurus. Rhamphosaurus Cope 1872 Preoccupied. Preoccupied by another lizard, referred to Tylosaurus. Rhinosaurus Marsh 1872 Preoccupied. Preoccupied,[7] referred to Tylosaurus. Rikisaurus[8] Wiffen 1990 Jr. synonym. New Zealand Junior synonym of Moanasaurus. Rikkisaurus Bell Caldwell Holmes Wiffen McKee 1999 Lapsus calami. Lapsus calami of Rikisaurus. Romeosaurus[9] Palci Caldwell Papzzoni 2013 Valid. Europe Russellosaurus[10] Polson Bell 2005 Valid. North America Saurochampsa Wagler 1830 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Mosasaurus. Selmasaurus[11] Wright Shannon 1988 Valid. Sironectes Cope 1840 Jr. synonym. Junior synonym of Platecarpus. Taniwhasaurus Hector 1874 Valid. Tethysaurus[12] Bardet Superbiola Jalil 2003 Valid. Africa Tylosaurus Marsh 1872 Valid. Vallecillosaurus[13] Smith Buchy 2008 Valid. North America Non-mosasaurid mosasauroid. Yaguarasaurus Paramo 1994 Valid.		Aigialosaurus. Clidastes. Dollosaurus. Globidens. Goronyosaurus. Halisaurus. Latoplatecarpus. Mosasaurus. Platecarpus. Plesioplatecarpus. Plioplatecarpus. Plotosaurus. Prognathodon. Selmasaurus. Taniwhasaurus. Tylosaurus. Vallecillosaurus.

See also

• Mosasaur
• Platynota
• Aigialosaur

Notes

1. Redescription of Acteosaurus tommasinii von Meyer, 1860, and a discussion of evolutionary trends within the clade Ophidiomorpha. 2010.
2. Stenocercus at Herpbreeder.com Archived April 29, 2007, at the Wayback Machine.. Retrieved 12-03-2007.
3. Leblanc, A.R.H.; Caldwell, M.W.; Bardet, N. (2012). "A new mosasaurine from the Maastrichtian (Upper Cretaceous) phosphates of Morocco and its implications for mosasaurine systematics". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 32 (1): 82–104. doi:10.1080/02724634.2012.624145.
4. Sauropterygia at Paleofile.com. Retrieved 12-03-2007.
5. Konishi, T.; Caldwell, M.W. (2011). "Two new plioplatecarpine (Squamata, Mosasauridae) genera from the Upper Cretaceous of North America, and a global phylogenetic analysis of plioplatecarpines". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 31 (4): 754–783. doi:10.1080/02724634.2011.579023.
6. Cuthbertson, R.S.; Mallon, J.C.; Campione, N.E.; Holmes, R.B. (2007). "A new species of mosasaur (Squamata: Mosasauridae) from the Pierre Shale (lower Campanian) of Manitoba". Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences 44 (5): 593–606. doi:10.1139/e07-006.
7. Edward Drinker Cope "On the structure of the Pythonomorpha". (1872) Proceedings of the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia, 24:140-141
8. Wiffen, J. 1990: New mosasaurs (Reptilia; family Mosasauridae) from the Upper Cretaceous of North Island, New Zealand. New Zealand journal of geology and geophysics, 33: 67-85.
9. Alessandro Palci, Michael W. Caldwell and Cesare A. Papazzoni (2013). "A new genus and subfamily of mosasaurs from the Upper Cretaceous of northern Italy". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 33 (3): 599–612. doi:10.1080/02724634.2013.731024.
10. Polcyn, M. J. & Bell Jr., G. L., 2005: Russellosaurus coheni n. gen., n. sp., a 92 million-year-old mosasaur from Texas (USA), and the definition of the parafamily Russellosaurina. –Netherlands Journal of Geosciences - Geologie en Mijnbouw: Vol. 84, #3.
11. Wright, K. R. & Shannon, S. W., 1988: Selmasaurus russelli, a new plioplatecarpine mosasaur (Squamata, Mosasauridae) from Alabama. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology: Vol. 8, #1, pp. 102-107
12. Bardet, N., X. Pereda Suberbiola, and N-E. Jalil. 2003. A new mosasauroid (Squamata) from the Late Cretaceous (Turonian) of Morocco. Comptes Rendus de l'Académie des Sciences, Palevol 2:607–616.
13. Smith, K.T. and Buchy, M-C. 2008 A new aigialosaur (Squamata-Anguimorpha) with soft tissue remains from the Upper Cretaceous of Nuevo Leon, Mexico. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 28(1): 85-94.

References

• Pythonomorpha at Mikko's Phylogeny Archive. Retrieved 12-03-2007.
• Mosasauridae Translation and Pronunciation Guide at Dinosauria.com. Retrieved 12-03-2007.