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Posts by Adam S. Smith, the admin of plesiosauria.com.

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Recent plesiosaur papers – a round up

So far, 2008 has seen a healthy number of new papers on plesiosaurs and a few new taxa too. Way back in February, Druckenmiller and Russell (2008a) introduced Nichollsia borealis, a plesiosaur of uncertain affinity, based on a beautifully preserved specimen from Alberta, Canada.

Update on the ‘Kreis Hoxter plesiosaur’

I reported in Summer 2007 on a four-metre-long plesiosaur skeleton that was discovered in Kreis Hoxter, near Bielefeld, Northern Germany by amateur collector Sönke Simonsen. I can now provide a short update on the fossil. The specimen was successfully excavated in ten large blocks by the LWL-Museum für Naturkunde, Münsterand, where preparation of the skeleton is well underway.

‘Pickstown plesiosaur’ unearthed in South Dakota

The discovery of a new plesiosaur specimen was recently announced by the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, South Dakota, USA. 11-year-old Devon Zimmerman noticed the skull and part of the backbone on the bank of the Missouri River, near Pickstown, South Dakota, during a vacation with parents Duane and DeeAnn Zimmerman of Sioux City, Iowa.

About ‘Plesiosaur Bites’

This WordPress blog is the new official news page of ‘The Plesiosaur Directory’. It will replace the former html news web page of my website. I think this system will be a much more amenable replacement with benefits for both myself (automated dating, no more FTP-ing etc.) and hopefully for my readers too (comments and RSS feed).

‘Sea Monsters – Prehistoric Creatures of the Deep’ book review

I recently read and reviewed Mike Everhart’s new book for the online Journal Palaeontologica Electronica, I reproduce it here:

Sea Monsters – Prehistoric Creatures of the Deep, is the official companion to the recently released IMAX movie of the same name.

Arctic pliosaur is new species

Another giant pliosauroid plesiosaur fossil from Arctic Svalbard Islands appears to represent a new species. The specimen was discovered and initial excavations took place in Summer 2007. The treasure trove of marine reptile fossils were first discovered in 2006 by a team from the University of Oslo, Natural History Museum, led by Dr.

Irish plesiosaur bone

A plesiosaur bone has been discovered in Ireland, reported the BBC in October. The single bone represents a large plesiosaur vertebral centrum, but cannot be identified in any detail. It was discovered by Park Ranger Paul Bennet in the Colin River in Colin Glen, on the West edge of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

‘Sea Monsters’ movie released

The newest film offering from National Geographic opened to 78 IMAX theaters across the United States, the largest ever opening for an IMAX movie. ‘Sea Monsters’ is set in the Late Cretaceous Western Interior Sea, and follows the journey of a growing Dolichorhynchops.