STL Science Center

STL Science Center

13 June 2015

No Single Image

Today I think it would be wildly inappropriate to post a single image of a single species of Mosasaurus. There are a lot of different interpretations of Mosasaurus and these can vary depending on the species that one is looking at as well. Fortunately, there is a nearly catch-all place to look at Western Interior Seaway Mosasaurus species in illustrated form. The work of the late Dan Varner has been collected by Mike Everhart and hosted on his site for a long time, and Varner focused a great deal on the animals found in North America, but that list is extensive in its own right and is not necessarily speciated from those species found in Europe and Asia. In a few images he placed some unique and interesting traits like forked tongues, but they are peculiar enough in their speculation (and phylogenetic relationships) that they actually do not appear absurd. In working on marine reptiles in the not so distant past I frequently saw these images, and I have grown quite fond of them. I encourage everyone to take the time to explore and appreciate them.

No comments:

Post a Comment