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59 / Mesozoic
Liopleurodon
Liopleurodon ferox
A broad skull and four powerful flippers belonged to a leading Jurassic marine predator.
Structured expansion · editorial review pending
- Time range
- About 166–155 million years ago
- Final stage
- Late Jurassic
- Geographic range
- European seas
01 / ANSWER FIRST
What was Liopleurodon?
This archive records Liopleurodon under the scientific name Liopleurodon ferox, with an age of About 166–155 million years ago and a range of European seas. A broad skull and four powerful flippers belonged to a leading Jurassic marine predator.
Liopleurodon was a large pliosaur that attacked fish and other marine reptiles. Its true length was impressive but far below some older popular estimates.
02 / QUICK FACTS
Liopleurodon at a glance
- Scientific name
- Liopleurodon ferox
- Age
- About 166–155 million years ago
- Last recorded stage
- Late Jurassic
- Known range
- European seas
- Broad group
- reptile
- Archive era
- Mesozoic
- Habitat signals
- Ocean
- Documented regions
- Europe
03 / ANATOMY
How was Liopleurodon built?
Overall body plan
A broad skull and four powerful flippers belonged to a leading Jurassic marine predator.
Skull and feeding apparatus
The available record is interpreted through preserved proportions, attachment surfaces, wear and comparison with related organisms. For Liopleurodon, those observations must be separated from features added only for visual reconstruction.
Axial skeleton and locomotion
Liopleurodon was a large pliosaur that attacked fish and other marine reptiles. Its true length was impressive but far below some older popular estimates.
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 Liopleurodon.
04 / DIET & BEHAVIOUR
How did Liopleurodon live?
Liopleurodon was a large pliosaur that attacked fish and other marine reptiles. Its true length was impressive but far below some older popular estimates. 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 Liopleurodon live?
This archive currently lists About 166–155 million years ago; European seas. 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
European seas. This boundary can change when specimens are reidentified or new localities are published.
Time window
About 166–155 million years ago, with the final recorded stage listed as Late Jurassic. 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 Liopleurodon?
Primary record
Skulls, teeth, limb bones and related skeletons establish its size and mechanics.
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 Liopleurodon within About 166–155 million years ago and European seas. 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.
08 / DISAPPEARANCE & DEBATE
Why did Liopleurodon disappear?
Late Jurassic ocean change and faunal turnover ended its lineage.
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
Liopleurodon FAQ
What was Liopleurodon?
This archive records Liopleurodon under the scientific name Liopleurodon ferox, with an age of About 166–155 million years ago. A broad skull and four powerful flippers belonged to a leading Jurassic marine predator.
When did Liopleurodon live?
The current archive range is About 166–155 million years ago; its youngest recorded stage is Late Jurassic.
Where was Liopleurodon found?
The archive currently lists European seas. Species-level locality assignments and the full geographic range still require source-specific review.
How do scientists know about Liopleurodon?
Skulls, teeth, limb bones and related skeletons establish its size and mechanics.
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