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57 / Mesozoic
Elasmosaurus
Elasmosaurus platyurus
An extraordinarily long neck let this marine reptile approach prey with a small head.
Structured expansion · editorial review pending
- Time range
- About 80.5 million years ago
- Final stage
- Late Cretaceous
- Geographic range
- Western Interior Seaway of North America
01 / ANSWER FIRST
What was Elasmosaurus?
This archive records Elasmosaurus under the scientific name Elasmosaurus platyurus, with an age of About 80.5 million years ago and a range of Western Interior Seaway of North America. An extraordinarily long neck let this marine reptile approach prey with a small head.
Elasmosaurus propelled itself with four stiff flippers and swallowed fish and squid whole. It could not bend its neck into dramatic swan-like coils.
02 / QUICK FACTS
Elasmosaurus at a glance
- Scientific name
- Elasmosaurus platyurus
- Age
- About 80.5 million years ago
- Last recorded stage
- Late Cretaceous
- Known range
- Western Interior Seaway of North America
- Broad group
- reptile
- Archive era
- Mesozoic
- Habitat signals
- Ocean
- Documented regions
- North America
03 / ANATOMY
How was Elasmosaurus built?
Overall body plan
An extraordinarily long neck let this marine reptile approach prey with a small head.
Skull and feeding apparatus
The available record is interpreted through preserved proportions, attachment surfaces, wear and comparison with related organisms. For Elasmosaurus, those observations must be separated from features added only for visual reconstruction.
Axial skeleton and locomotion
Elasmosaurus propelled itself with four stiff flippers and swallowed fish and squid whole. It could not bend its neck into dramatic swan-like coils.
Growth and individual variation
A single specimen does not define the whole species. Size, maturity, preservation and possible sex differences are considered before anatomical traits are treated as typical of Elasmosaurus.
04 / DIET & BEHAVIOUR
How did Elasmosaurus live?
Elasmosaurus propelled itself with four stiff flippers and swallowed fish and squid whole. It could not bend its neck into dramatic swan-like coils. This ecological reconstruction is strongest where anatomy, associated organisms and the depositional setting point in the same direction.
05 / DIET & BEHAVIOUR
What shaped its ecological limits?
Its populations depended on temperature, nesting habitat, prey or vegetation, and connected landscapes. Changes in any one factor did not necessarily cause immediate extinction, but interacting pressures could reduce range, recruitment and resilience.
06 / RANGE & HABITAT
Where and when did Elasmosaurus live?
This archive currently lists About 80.5 million years ago; Western Interior Seaway of North America. Fossil or historical occurrence data describe where evidence has been found, not every place the taxon once occupied. Species-level age and range limits still require source-specific review.
Documented geographic range
Western Interior Seaway of North America. This boundary can change when specimens are reidentified or new localities are published.
Time window
About 80.5 million years ago, with the final recorded stage listed as Late Cretaceous. Rock units and dating uncertainty mean the true biological range may extend beyond the known record.
Environmental setting
The archive uses the broad habitat labels Ocean. These labels help explore related records; a habitat reconstruction requires evidence from individual localities.
07 / FOSSIL EVIDENCE
What evidence supports reconstructions of Elasmosaurus?
Primary record
The type specimen, including skull material and its exceptionally long cervical series, is central to this species. Gastroliths, stomach contents and more complete skeletons of other plesiosaurs are comparative evidence, not automatically records of this species.
Comparative anatomy
Preserved structures are compared with close and functionally similar organisms. The method can constrain posture and function, but analogy alone cannot prove colour, behaviour or soft tissue.
Age and locality
Stratigraphy and occurrence records place Elasmosaurus within About 80.5 million years ago and Western Interior Seaway of North America. Reworked fossils and uncertain provenance are treated cautiously.
Open entity records
Links below connect the archive to available taxonomic and occurrence records. A matching name does not verify every ecological claim, and related-taxon links provide comparison rather than an exact species match.
Evidence limits for this record
The museum overview covers several plesiosaurs. Claims about diet or preserved soft tissues must be tied to the named species and specimen before being transferred here.
08 / DISAPPEARANCE & DEBATE
Why did Elasmosaurus disappear?
The known record of this species predates the end of the Cretaceous; the final extinction of plesiosaurs does not by itself explain when or why this species disappeared.
The last fossil or observation marks the youngest evidence currently known, not necessarily the death of the final individual. Explanations are strongest when timing, environmental change and population biology agree; otherwise the profile preserves uncertainty instead of assigning a single dramatic cause.
09 / FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Elasmosaurus FAQ
What was Elasmosaurus?
This archive records Elasmosaurus under the scientific name Elasmosaurus platyurus, with an age of About 80.5 million years ago. An extraordinarily long neck let this marine reptile approach prey with a small head.
When did Elasmosaurus live?
The current archive range is About 80.5 million years ago; its youngest recorded stage is Late Cretaceous.
Where was Elasmosaurus found?
The archive currently lists Western Interior Seaway of North America. Species-level locality assignments and the full geographic range still require source-specific review.
How do scientists know about Elasmosaurus?
The type specimen, including skull material and its exceptionally long cervical series, is central to this species. Gastroliths, stomach contents and more complete skeletons of other plesiosaurs are comparative evidence, not automatically records of this species.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Completed an AI-assisted bilingual audit of the archive record, corrected identified issues and clarified evidence limits; independent editorial review is pending.
- Expanded into a structured bilingual profile with anatomy, ecology, range, evidence, debate and FAQs; independent editorial review is pending.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS