570 vanished lives

217Paleozoic

A long, tooth-filled snout gave this giant amphibian a gharial-like aquatic profile.

218Paleozoic

A beak, short tusks and powerful forelimbs made this one of the most common burrowing herbivores of the Late Permian.

219Paleozoic

Long upper canines and a wide gape made it an early experiment in saber-toothed predation.

220Paleozoic

Nine pairs of broad, flattened ribs record an early stage in the evolution of the turtle shell.

221Mesozoic

This lightly built two-meter hunter represents an early branch from the first dinosaur diversification.

222Mesozoic

A long neck, small head and grasping hands mark a stage between bipedal ancestors and giant quadrupedal sauropods.

223Mesozoic

A curved transverse crest across its skull gives this large Antarctic theropod an unmistakable profile.

224Mesozoic

Tall neural spines along the neck and back supported a muscular ridge rather than a paper-thin sail.

225Mesozoic

Two very tall vertebrae ahead of the hips formed a short steep back crest, while the forearm carried unusual knobs.

226Mesozoic

A short deep skull carried a rounded horn, while tooth marks on its own species provide rare scavenging evidence.

227Mesozoic

A huge nasal horn and long spikes radiating from the frill made one of the most dramatic ceratopsian heads.

228Mesozoic

Fifteen horn-like ornaments across the nose, brows and broad frill formed a folded crown around the skull.

229Mesozoic

Plates covered the front body while long paired spikes armed the hips and tail, concentrating defense behind it.

230Mesozoic

Nineteen elongated neck vertebrae placed nearly half the body's length in the neck, lightened internally by air spaces.

231Mesozoic

Simple filamentous feathers and tail color bands made it the first dinosaur restored with evidence-based coloration.

232Mesozoic

Orderly vaned feathers covered its arms and short tail, but symmetric feathers and body proportions prevented powered flight.

233Mesozoic

A toothless beak, clawed wings and—in some individuals—two long ribbon-like tail feathers appeared together.

234Mesozoic

Its wings shrank to small bones while rear-set legs turned it into a superb Mesozoic pursuit diver.

235Mesozoic

Its body and flight resembled a tern, but a row of true teeth remained inside the long jaws.

236Mesozoic

An enormous crest rose above a short toothless beak, with soft tissue extending the bony sail still farther.

237Mesozoic

Four long flippers flew through water while a long flexible neck carried the small head toward prey.

238Mesozoic

A solid snout projected beyond the teeth as this giant mosasaur hunted fish, turtles and other reptiles.

239Mesozoic

Front flippers spanned several meters, and a leathery covering stretched over a reduced bony shell.

240Mesozoic

Huge bony eye rings supported vision under pressure and may have helped track soft prey in dim water.