The Plesiosaur Site

This site is intended to give serious and detailed information on the order plesiosauria, to provide a forum for discussion and for the presentation of ideas no matter how wild and fanciful on the palaeontology, taxonomy, biomechanics, biology and ecological role of members of the order. I hope that people will send in material I can include here.

It is not concerned with

Strange creatures lurking in lakes in Scotland, Sweden, Canada or anywhere else. Because I am asked the question so frequently I have added a page explaining why the Loch Ness monster is not a plesiosaur.

Decomposing sharks or any other modern marine animals. Decomposing carcases are frequently interpreted as being those of plesiosaurs, and I am contacted far too often by people trying to argue that that is what they are. All the pictures I've seen show something even superficailly completely unlike a plesiosaur, and marine biologists and shark experts confirm again and again that these are the carcases of sharks, most commonly basking sharks. Have a look at paleo.cc/paluxy/plesios.htm for a report by Glen Kuban and plesiosauria.com/living_plesiosaurs.php for a review by my friend and colleague Adam Smith.

If anyone

has any comments

finds any mistakes

wants to contribute their own views

has any pictures I can include without breaching copyright

wants to register material in collections I have not included

has draft papers to circulate for comment

has any wild idea to air

thinks this is all a load of tosh

Please contact me
e: moc.ruasoiselp@drahcir

label found in Oxford University Museum