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<title>Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life...</title>
<link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</link>
<description>A blog following, and detailing, my life and work with ichthyosaurs.</description>
<pubDate>Thu, 09 Jan 2020 22:11:10 +0000</pubDate>
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		<title>Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life&#8230;</title>
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  <title>Never too old</title>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[A photo of Georgia and myself posing in costume in the Dorset County Museum's fossil gallery.  Photo by Luke Hauser (on my camera).]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Hunterian Museum Stenopterygius An ichthyosaur with soft tissue preservation</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation/</link>
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  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[A very well preserved ichthyosaur (Stenopterygius) from the Posidonienschiefer of southern Germany showing exceptional preservation and skin outline. Copyright © University of Glasgow/Hunterian Museum (taken with permission from http://www.hmag.gla.ac.uk/Neil/reprods/).]]></excerpt:encoded>
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  <wp:post_name>hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>27</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Sander 2000 Mixosaurus</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/sander-2000-mixosaurus/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:55:00 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-mixosaurus.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[The Triassic ichthyosaur Mixosaurus cornalianus from the southern Alps.  The Triassic ichthyosaurs had a less defined tail fin and more similarly sized paddles.  Mixosaurus cornalianus had very long neural spines (above the backbone), a feature characteristic to the species.  From Sander (2000).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>29</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 13:55:00</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 13:55:00</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>sander-2000-mixosaurus</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>27</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Sander 2000 Ophthalmosaurus</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/sander-2000-ophthalmosaurus/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:55:02 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-ophthalmosaurus.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[The Late Jurassic ichthyosaur Ophthalmosaurus shows much similarity to Stenopterygius.  The extremely large eye is characteristic of the genus, although it also features reduced pectoral and pelvic girdles and is more barrel-chested.  From Sander (2000).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>30</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 13:55:02</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 13:55:02</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>sander-2000-ophthalmosaurus</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>27</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Sander 2000 Stenopterygius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/sander-2000-stenopterygius/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 13:55:04 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-stenopterygius.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Stenopterygius from the Lower Jurassic of southern Germany.  This is very commonly found in quarries and is represented by thousands of specimens.  The preservation can be so good that the original skin outline and even some of its structure may be seen.  This typical thunniform ichthyosaur shows the fusiform shape, larger forelimb and crescent tail typical of Jurassic and Cretaceous species.  From Sander (2000).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>31</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 13:55:04</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 13:55:04</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>sander-2000-stenopterygius</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>27</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1.jpg</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/headers/cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1-jpg/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:13:49 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1.jpg]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>41</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 14:13:49</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 14:13:49</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>closed</wp:comment_status>
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  <wp:post_name>cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1-jpg</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>65</wp:post_parent>
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    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[pub/twentyeleven]]></wp:meta_value>
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<item>
  <title>cropped-photo-4.jpg</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/headers/cropped-photo-4-jpg/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:40:34 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-photo-4.jpg</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-photo-4.jpg]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>44</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 16:40:34</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 16:40:34</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>closed</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>cropped-photo-4-jpg</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>65</wp:post_parent>
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    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[pub/twentyeleven]]></wp:meta_value>
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<item>
  <title>cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/headers/cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew-jpg/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 16:59:15 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>45</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-28 16:59:15</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-28 16:59:15</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>closed</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew-jpg</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>65</wp:post_parent>
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    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[pub/twentyeleven]]></wp:meta_value>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Earth Chronostratigraphic Chart</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/29/geological-time/earth-system/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:28:09 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/earth-system1.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[The history of the Earth with chronostratigraphic divisions based upon Ogg et al. (2008).  Key events are also present and will be added to over time. (Click to view larger version.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>59</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-11-29 15:28:09</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-11-29 15:28:09</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>earth-system</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>48</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/earth-system1.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Brachypterygius BMNH R3177 RfpD</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:47:09 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 4 <em>Brachypterygius extremes</em> forepaddle showing the three equally sized distal humeral facets articulating with the radius, intermedium and ulna. Specimen BMNH R3177 (modified from Kirton 1983).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>73</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-07 12:47:09</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-07 12:47:09</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>71</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Nannopterygius McG Mot 2003 body</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:47:11 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 5 <em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon</em> from the Kimmeridge Clay of Dorset (specimen BMNH 46497). Note the very small paddles compared to the rest of the body. Modified from McGowan and Motani (2003).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>74</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-07 12:47:11</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-07 12:47:11</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>71</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Ophthalmosaurus BMNH R3702 RfpD</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:47:15 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 2 Right forepaddle of <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> from the Oxford Clay of Peterborough (BMNH R3702) in dorsal view.  Note the three facets on the distal end of the humerus and the large number of digits (arab numerals) and phalanges (roman numerals).  The anterior- and posteriormost digits are accessory digits (modified from Kirton 1983).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>75</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-07 12:47:15</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-07 12:47:15</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>71</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus reconstruction</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/ophthalmosaurus-icenicus-reconstruction/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:47:17 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-icenicus-reconstruction.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 1 Reconstruction of <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> (modified from Kirton 1983).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>76</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-07 12:47:17</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-07 12:47:17</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ophthalmosaurus-icenicus-reconstruction</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>71</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>Ophthalmosaurus McG Mot 2003 Sk</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/ophthalmosaurus-mcg-mot-2003-sk/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:47:19 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-mcg-mot-2003-sk.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 3 Skull of <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> showing the very large orbit, where the eye sits.  The ring of bones (sclerotic ring) would have kept the shape of the eye and assisted in focussing underwater. Modified from McGowan and Motani (2003).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>77</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-07 12:47:19</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-07 12:47:19</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ophthalmosaurus-mcg-mot-2003-sk</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>71</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>cladogram example</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/cladogram-example/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:39:20 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/cladogram-example.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 1 Example cladogram created from the matrix in table 1 using PHYLIP 3.69  (Felsenstein 2009).  This analysis shows that E and B are closely related and most derived.  Their clade, A and C could not  be resolved fully, resulting in a polytomy.  D is the least derived.  D is the outgroup to all others.  Also, A, C and D is the outgroup to B and E.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>92</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-13 12:39:20</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-13 12:39:20</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>cladogram-example</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>91</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/cladogram-example.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Phylo matrix</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/phylo-matrix/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:39:22 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/phylo-matrix.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Table 1 Data matrix for five taxa (A–E) with 10 characters (1–10). All characters except five are two-state — character five is three-state.  Uncertainty is indicated by ‘?’ and missing data by ‘-’.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>93</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-13 12:39:22</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-13 12:39:22</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>phylo-matrix</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>91</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/phylo-matrix.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaur cladograms 1999–2000</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/ichthyosaur-cladograms-1999-2000/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:39:25 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ichthyosaur-cladograms-1999e280932000.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 2 Three phylogenies of ichthyosaurs proposed in 1999–2000. A from Motani (1999), B modified from Sander (2000) and C from Maisch and Matzke (2000).  Names on the right indicate the taxa involved in the analysis. Names of clades are given in A and B. Clade number are given at branchings in C. Temno. refers to Temnodontosaurus, a Lower Jurassic ichthyosaur.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>94</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2011-12-13 12:39:25</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2011-12-13 12:39:25</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaur-cladograms-1999-2000</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>91</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Thorne et al disparity</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/thorne-et-al-disparity/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:08:06 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/thorne-et-al-disparity.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 1 Ichthyosaur disparity decreased over the TJB more than diversity.  From Thorne et al. 2011.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>115</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-01-05 15:08:06</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-01-05 15:08:06</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>thorne-et-al-disparity</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>114</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Rayfield 2005 CAT</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/rayfield-2005-cat/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:08:09 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/rayfield-2005-cat.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Fig. 2 Finite Element analysis of three theropod dinosaurs, Coelophysis, Allosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus.  Top diagrams show the fossils.  Middle diagrams are the surface mesh, arrows show fulcra.  Lower diagrams show stresses under FEA analysis, warmer colours indicate higher forces, arrows show force transferral.  Modified from Rayfield (2005).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>116</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-01-05 15:08:09</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-01-05 15:08:09</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>rayfield-2005-cat</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>114</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
  <wp:post_password/>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/rayfield-2005-cat.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Biostratigraphy</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/brevis-what-on-earth-is-palaeontology/biostratigraphy/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:24:36 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/biostratigraphy.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Example of correlation over sections using fossils.  Each stratum with a certain fossil was deposited at a certain time.  The different thicknesses can be caused by different sedimentation rates or the spread of the species itself.  Where there is no occurrence, indicates that so sediment was deposited, the species could not colonise that environment or there has been erosion causing an unconformity.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>151</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-01-31 11:24:36</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-01-31 11:24:36</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>biostratigraphy</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>150</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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<item>
  <title>wbp-cranium-banner.jpg</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/wbp-cranium-banner-jpg/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 19 Feb 2012 16:26:21 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/wbp-cranium-banner.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/wbp-cranium-banner.jpg]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>155</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-19 16:26:21</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-19 16:26:21</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>wbp-cranium-banner-jpg</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>0</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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    <wp:meta_key>_wp_attachment_context</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[custom-header]]></wp:meta_value>
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<item>
  <title>wbp-banner.jpg</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/wbp-banner-jpg/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 19 Feb 2012 16:58:02 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/wbp-banner.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/wbp-banner.jpg]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>156</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-19 16:58:02</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-19 16:58:02</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>wbp-banner-jpg</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>0</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
  <wp:post_password/>
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    <wp:meta_key>_wp_attachment_context</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[custom-header]]></wp:meta_value>
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  <wp:postmeta>
    <wp:meta_key>_wp_attachment_is_custom_header</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[pub/twentyeleven]]></wp:meta_value>
  </wp:postmeta>
</item>
<item>
  <title>WBP banner</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/headers/wbp-banner/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 19 Feb 2012 16:59:16 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/wbp-banner.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[The Weymouth Bay Pliosaur in dorsal (left) and right lateral (right) views.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>157</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-19 16:59:16</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-19 16:59:16</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>wbp-banner</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>65</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/wbp-banner.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Besanosaurus map</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/whos-useless-at-writing-a-bog-i-am/besanosaurus-map/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:27:04 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/besanosaurus-map.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Besanosaurus leptorhynchus from the Besano Formation (Grenzbitumenzone) near Besano, northern Italy. From Dal Sasso and Pinna (1996).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>161</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-29 15:27:04</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-29 15:27:04</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>besanosaurus-map</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>160</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>NHMUK 'Nanno' vertebral series</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/whos-useless-at-writing-a-bog-i-am/nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:27:13 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Unidentified ‘ichthyosaur’ vertebrae in the collections of the Natural History Museum, London. Still in their plaster wrapping, centra with articulated neural spines.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>162</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-29 15:27:13</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-29 15:27:13</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>160</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
  <wp:post_password/>
  <wp:is_sticky>0</wp:is_sticky>
  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>NHMUK 46497a</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/whos-useless-at-writing-a-bog-i-am/nhmuk-46497a/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:27:35 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-46497a.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Isolated hindpaddle of Nannopterygius enthekiodon, from the Kimmeridgian, in most views as suggested on SV-POW. There has been some slight dorsoventral crushing, hence the significant difference in size of the proximal femoral processes. Abbreviations: car: carpal, dp: dorsal process, fem: femur, fib: fibula, int: intermedium, tbl tibiale, tib: tibia, vp: ventral process.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>163</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-29 15:27:35</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-29 15:27:35</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nhmuk-46497a</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>160</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-46497a.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>NHMUK Ichthyosaurus leptospondylus</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/whos-useless-at-writing-a-bog-i-am/nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:27:46 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Ichthyosaurs leptopterygius from the Solnhofen Limestone of southern Germany. Significantly crushed, in dorsal view.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>164</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-02-29 15:27:46</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-02-29 15:27:46</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>160</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Brachypterygius mordax BRSMG Ce 16696 exhibit</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:39:06 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[A Kimmeridgian ichthyosaur (Grendelius mordax) from Somerset, UK. Housed in Bristol Museum (Ce 16696). This is a composite photograph so not perfectly joined.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>193</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-07-13 10:39:06</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-07-13 09:39:06</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>192</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:postmeta>
    <wp:meta_key>geo_latitude</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[51.456167]]></wp:meta_value>
  </wp:postmeta>
  <wp:postmeta>
    <wp:meta_key>geo_longitude</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[-2.605167]]></wp:meta_value>
  </wp:postmeta>
  <wp:postmeta>
    <wp:meta_key>geo_accuracy</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[40]]></wp:meta_value>
  </wp:postmeta>
  <wp:postmeta>
    <wp:meta_key>geo_public</wp:meta_key>
    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[1]]></wp:meta_value>
  </wp:postmeta>
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<item>
  <title>SMCJ68516(McGowanMotani2003)</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:40:55 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Brachypterygius mordax, a large, complete but crushed skull in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge (SMC J68516) (from McGowan and Motani 2003).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>194</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-07-13 10:40:55</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-07-13 09:40:55</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>192</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Brachypterygius extremus forepaddle2</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/brachypterygius-extremus-forepaddle2/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:42:29 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-extremus-forepaddle2.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Brachypterygius extremus forepaddle, specimen in the Natural History Museum (specimen R3177).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>195</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-07-13 10:42:29</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-07-13 09:42:29</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>brachypterygius-extremus-forepaddle2</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>192</wp:post_parent>
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  <title>Brachypterygius BRSMG Ce 16696 skull piece oriented mix</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/brachypterygius-brsmg-ce-16696-skull-piece-oriented-mix/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:45:12 +0000</pubDate>
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  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Brachypterygius sp., skull piece and interpretation, from the Bristol Museum (specimen Ce 16696).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>196</wp:post_id>
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  <title>cropped-brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit1.jpg</title>
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  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:58:08 +0000</pubDate>
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  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Brachypterygius mordax composite photo of specimen Ce 16696 from Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.]]></excerpt:encoded>
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  <title>brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit2.jpg</title>
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  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 10:37:04 +0000</pubDate>
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  <title>Brachypterygius BRSMG Ce 16696 skull piece mixed 100dpi</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/brachypterygius-brsmg-ce-16696-skull-piece-mixed-100dpi/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 18 Jul 2012 09:37:47 +0000</pubDate>
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  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Brachypterygius sp., skull piece and interpretation, from the Bristol Museum (undescribed &amp; unfigured specimen Ce 16696). This is the treat I spoke of in a previous post. [Thanks to Paul for commenting on the labelling — what I had labelled as the angulars are more likely splenials.]]]></excerpt:encoded>
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  <title>Leicester NWM interior</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/of-leicester-the-apple-in-its-own-eye/leicester-nwm-interior/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 01 Sep 2012 17:45:42 +0000</pubDate>
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  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[The hidden bowels of the New Walk Museum, Leicester, showing the collections on shelves, trolleys and in drawers in cupboards in stacks on rollers.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>215</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-09-01 18:45:42</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-09-01 17:45:42</wp:post_date_gmt>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaur species 1|0</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaur-species-10/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:56:35 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[A pdf of currently valid ichthyosaur species, with authority references.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>251</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-09-11 14:56:35</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-09-11 13:56:35</wp:post_date_gmt>
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  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaur-species-10</wp:post_name>
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  <title>Ichthyosaur montage</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/18/ichthyosaurs-all-aswim/ichthyosaur-montage/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 13 Sep 2012 16:41:14 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>279</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-09-13 17:41:14</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-09-13 16:41:14</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
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  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaur-montage</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>278</wp:post_parent>
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    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[A school? of ichthyosaurs. Images by Dmitry Bogdanov and Nobu Tamura.]]></wp:meta_value>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_1_0_1</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_1_0_1/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 18 Sep 2012 15:09:07 +0000</pubDate>
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  <wp:post_id>296</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-09-18 16:09:07</wp:post_date>
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  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaurspecies_1_0_1</wp:post_name>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies__basic_1_1/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2012 14:32:24 +0000</pubDate>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[List of valid ichthyosaur genera and species.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>305</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-10-01 15:32:24</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-10-01 14:32:24</wp:post_date_gmt>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1.1.1</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_1/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2012 15:11:50 +0000</pubDate>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[List of ichthyosaur species]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>309</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-10-01 16:11:50</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-10-01 15:11:50</wp:post_date_gmt>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_2</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_2/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 15 Oct 2012 18:46:18 +0000</pubDate>
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  <wp:post_id>313</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-10-15 19:46:18</wp:post_date>
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  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_Cryopterygius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 11:57:16 +0000</pubDate>
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  <wp:post_id>319</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-11-20 11:57:16</wp:post_date>
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  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_geology</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_geology/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 11:57:22 +0000</pubDate>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>320</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-11-20 11:57:22</wp:post_date>
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  <wp:post_name>druckenmilleretal_2012_geology</wp:post_name>
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  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_Palvennia</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 11:57:34 +0000</pubDate>
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  <wp:post_id>321</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-11-20 11:57:34</wp:post_date>
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  <wp:post_name>druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia</wp:post_name>
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  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_geology</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_geology-2/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 11:59:07 +0000</pubDate>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
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  <wp:post_id>322</wp:post_id>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_geology.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_Palvennia</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia-2/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 11:59:09 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia.jpg</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Palvennia hoybergeti, skull in dorsal(ish) view. The skull has been crushed so that the side can also be seen. From Druckenmiller et al. 2012.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>323</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-11-20 11:59:09</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-11-20 11:59:09</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia-2</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>318</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>Druckenmilleretal_2012_Cryopterygius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius-2/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 12:04:03 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Cryopterygius kristiansenae near-complete skeleton showing the left side. the skull and forepaddle are clearly preserved in profile. From Druckenmiller et al. 2012.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>324</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-11-20 12:04:03</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-11-20 12:04:03</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius-2</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>318</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_3</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_3/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 09 Jan 2013 12:00:29 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_3.pdf</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>332</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-09 12:00:29</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-09 12:00:29</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_3</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>222</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_3.pdf</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Thalattoarchon saurophagis</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/if-you-go-down-to-the-triassic-today/08_ichthyosaurus-2-final/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 17 Jan 2013 12:51:12 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/08_ichthyosaurus-2-final.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Thalattoarchon saurophagis looking big mean and ichthyosaurian. Here it’s chasing a smaller mixosaur (e.g. Phalarodon) which has been found nearby. Artwork by Raul Martin.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>336</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-17 12:51:12</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-17 12:51:12</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>08_ichthyosaurus-2-final</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>335</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/08_ichthyosaurus-2-final.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
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    <wp:meta_value><![CDATA[]]></wp:meta_value>
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<item>
  <title>Young Stenopterygius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/a-plethora-of-ichthyosaurs/hauff_56/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:17:32 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/hauff_56.jpg</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Stenopterygius quadriscissus from the Posidonienschiefer of Southwest Germany. This is a young individual, but exquisitely preserved: all elements in articulation and a preservation of the body outline. Photograph by Heinrich Mallison.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>341</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-17 17:17:32</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-17 17:17:32</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>hauff_56</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>340</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/hauff_56.jpg</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:00:21 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 4. A new specimen of Ichthyosaurus communis from the Pliensbachian of Charmouth. this is the youngest I. communis known and also shows gut contents. (From Bennett et al. 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>346</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:00:21</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:00:21</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus.png</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>CAMSM_Grendelius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/camsm_grendelius/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:00:28 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/camsm_grendelius.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 12. ‘Grendelius’ mordax on display in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge. the lower jaw is about 1.2 m long.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>347</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:00:28</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:00:28</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>camsm_grendelius</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
  <wp:post_type>attachment</wp:post_type>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/camsm_grendelius.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_JCB_survival</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:00:32 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 3. Extinction rates and clade generation rates of ophthalmosaurids (an ichthyosaur subgroup) through the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. The low extinction rates show continuation of taxa across the Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary (orange). In this data there are no new clades (groups) arising after the Late Jurassic. (From Fischer et al. 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>348</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:00:32</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:00:32</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>LomaxMassare2012_Leptonectes_embryo</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:00:46 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 6. An embryo of Leptonectes from Somerset. Young are often identifiable by their large eyes. Several of the embryo’s bones are scattered, and there are vertebrae from the associated adult too. (From Lomax and Massare 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>349</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:00:46</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:00:46</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo.png</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Martinetal2012_Temnodontosaurus_azerguensis</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:08 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 5. Temnodontosaurus azerguensis from the Toarcian of France. This large ichthyosaur is odd as there are no teeth associated with it, other Temnodontosaurus are well known for having big teeth. (From Martin et al. 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>350</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:08</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:08</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Maxwelletal2012_Stenopterygius_aaleniensis</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:18 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 2. Stenopterygius aaleniensis from the Aalenian of southwestern Germany. this shows the unusual preservation where the body is largely seen side-on, but the head and shoulders are face-on. A is the type specimen and B an interpretative drawing. (From Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>352</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:18</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:18</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis.png</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>NHM_Nannopterygius</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/nhm_nannopterygius/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:24 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_nannopterygius.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 13. Nannopterygius enthekiodon, the best photo I could in the Natural History Museum, London. The specimen is about 3 m long.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>353</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:24</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:24</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nhm_nannopterygius</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_nannopterygius.png</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>NHM_Ophthalmosaurus</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/nhm_ophthalmosaurus/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:30 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_ophthalmosaurus.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 11. Ophthalmosaurus icenicus in the main hall at the Natural History Museum, London. This specimen is about 5 m long.]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>354</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:30</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:30</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>nhm_ophthalmosaurus</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_ophthalmosaurus.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Organetal2012_Stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:43 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth.png</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 7. A famous Stenopterygius specimen. This is usually interpreted as an adult with a juvenile in the process of being birthed: ichthyosaurs gave birth to live young, as with modern mammals. It is this, among other things, that likely allowed them to become so highly adapted to their marine lifestye. (From Organ et al. 2009.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>355</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:43</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:43</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:50 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 10. Stills from the above video showing the effect of sticking a pointed stick into a bloated whale. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>356</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:50</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:50</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills.png</wp:attachment_url>
</item>
<item>
  <title>Reisdorfetal2012_Stenopterygius_'exploded'</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/reisdorfetal2012_stenopterygius_exploded/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:53 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reisdorfetal2012_stenopterygius_exploded.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 9. The scattered remains of a Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. Specimens with the bones spread like this are not uncommon. The diffuse substrate and even low-velocity currents are the likely cause of this preservation. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>357</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:53</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:53</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>reisdorfetal2012_stenopterygius_exploded</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Rothschildatal2012_decompression_Leptonectes</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/rothschildatal2012_decompression_leptonectes/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:01:55 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/rothschildatal2012_decompression_leptonectes.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 8. The effects of ‘the bends’ can be seen in the bones of this Leptonectes tenuirostris. The bone cells are killed, and the stricture weakened, which causes failure when the bone is loaded. the shaft of the arrow is 40 mm. (From Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin 2012.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>358</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:01:55</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:01:55</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>rothschildatal2012_decompression_leptonectes</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>Temnodontosaurus_CFD</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/temnodontosaurus_cfd/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:02:17 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/temnodontosaurus_cfd.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 14. Preliminary fluid dynamics testing. The silhouette is of Temnodontosaurus from Motani (2005).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>359</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:02:17</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:02:17</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>temnodontosaurus_cfd</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
  <wp:menu_order>0</wp:menu_order>
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  <wp:attachment_url>https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/temnodontosaurus_cfd.png</wp:attachment_url>
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<item>
  <title>Maxwell2012_Stenopterygius_morphospace</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/maxwell2012_stenopterygius_morphospace/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:02:37 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwell2012_stenopterygius_morphospace.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Figure 1. Morphospace plot of Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. This shows the distributions of three species: S. quadriscissus, S. triscissus and S. uniter. Component 1 is related to size and growth. The starred specimens are embryos (to the left) and their mothers (to the right). Circled points are type specimens. (From Maxwell 2012a.)]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>360</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-01-23 12:02:37</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-01-23 12:02:37</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>maxwell2012_stenopterygius_morphospace</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>344</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>uJichth PCO1-2 new</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/recently-in-my-life/ujichth-pco1-2-new/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 11 Mar 2013 11:50:35 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/ujichth-pco1-2-new.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Intraspecific variation of humeri in Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs, including Ophthalmosaurus icenicus (red), Brachypterygius extremus (blue), Nannopterygius enthekiodon (green) and LEICT G1.2001.016 (pink).]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>367</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-03-11 11:50:35</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-03-11 11:50:35</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ujichth-pco1-2-new</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>366</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_4</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_4/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 11 Apr 2013 14:45:05 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_42.pdf</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>375</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-04-11 15:45:05</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-04-11 14:45:05</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_4</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>222</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_5</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_5-formatted/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 19 May 2013 11:19:06 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_5-formatted.pdf</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>377</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-05-19 12:19:06</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-05-19 11:19:06</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_5-formatted</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
  <wp:post_parent>222</wp:post_parent>
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<item>
  <title>2013-06-15 publications</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/06/15/is-there-really-an-ichthyosaur-renaissance-going-on/2013-06-15-publications/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 16:22:01 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/2013-06-15-publications1.png</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[Ichthyosaur publications and authors from their first description (Home 1814) through to the present day (halfway through 2013). I should point out that these are only the ones that I know of and are certainly not all.
]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>381</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-06-15 17:22:01</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-06-15 16:22:01</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
  <wp:ping_status>open</wp:ping_status>
  <wp:post_name>2013-06-15-publications</wp:post_name>
  <wp:status>inherit</wp:status>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 24 Jul 2013 10:01:11 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6.pdf</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[]]></content:encoded>
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  <wp:post_id>384</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2013-07-24 11:01:11</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2013-07-24 10:01:11</wp:post_date_gmt>
  <wp:comment_status>open</wp:comment_status>
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  <wp:post_name>ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6</wp:post_name>
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<item>
  <title>Home</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=398</link>
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  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=398</guid>
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  <wp:post_id>398</wp:post_id>
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  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <title>cropped-charmouth-from-lyme-regis.jpg</title>
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  <pubDate>Sun, 03 May 2015 11:19:20 +0000</pubDate>
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  <title>Hello, and welcome</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/10/01/hello/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 01 Oct 2011 17:00:50 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Hello readers and welcome,

My name is Benjamin and I will be beginning my PhD studies at the University of Bristol, UK on Monday, 3 October 2011.

[caption id="attachment_5" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Georgia MacLean-Henry and myself (left) dino-ing it up at Dorset County Museum. Photo taken by Luke Hauser on my camera."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/myself.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-5" title="Never too old" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/10/myself.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="224" /></a>[/caption]

I have decided to try writing a blog as a document of this, to begin spreading some of my findings as soon as possible and to help keep my sanity, although I may fail in the last of these.

About myself: I am 21, originally from Marksbury, England, although I completed my undergraduate degree, in Palaeobiology and Evolution, at the University of Portsmouth.  Being a child of the nineties, I grew up in the time of Jurassic Park, although I will admit to not being able to watch it all the way through until I was about seven years old.  Soon after that came the wondrous, and innovative, BBC documentary 'Walking with Dinosaurs' which used state-of-the-art computer graphics, coupled with real-world environments, to bring dinosaurs back to life.

I've always been interested in dinosaurs, since getting my 'My First Dinosaur Book' at the age of three.  While having lost this somewhat in primary school, after discovering music from starting to play keyboard and baritone, I regained my love following 'Walking with Dinosaurs' and haven't lost it since.  This series also introduced me to the large vertebrates that shared the Mesozoic (248–65.5 Ma [million years ago]) world, particularly the marine reptiles: plesiosaurs and ichthyosaurs, which, up to then, I hadn't wholly considered.  I knew I wanted to study prehistoric life, and so started looking at which universities offered the course from the age of 14-ish (compared to some who haven't decided on A-level results day!).

I truly enjoyed university very much, making many friends who were interested in talking about rocks and fossils; these had been few and far between before.  The course also introduced me to the beauties and complexities of palaeontology:
<ul>
	<li>Most fossils are of shelled animals, not bones, and are too small to see with the naked eye, but are the basis for reconstructing the environment many millions of years ago.</li>
	<li>The fossils are usually crushed and distorted beyond instant recognition, or altered by being collected.</li>
	<li>A huge amount of information can be gleaned from one, or a few, shells and where they were found; just think how this increases with a 100 bone skeleton!</li>
	<li>Preservation can be so complete that cellular structures can be view on specimens under a high powered microscope.</li>
	<li>And many more things beside (I may talk about some of these later...)</li>
</ul>
Now, I have the chance to study what I consider to be the most interesting organisms of all time: Mesozoic marine reptiles, and get a qualification for doing it!  My thesis is based upon reviewing the Middle and Upper Jurassic (~160–145 Ma) ichthyosaurs of Britain.  Based on a previous thesis by Dr Angela Kirton, I will be updating descriptions she made of the four taxa then known; analysing the relationships between these and other ichthyosaurs and extending the project to consider many other aspects of ichthyosaur palaeobiology: palaeogeography, mechanics and evolution.  With this blog, I aim to keep a record of this, explain it to myself and hopefully present my findings in a more publicly digestible format.  I apologise for using quite a bit of jargon in this first post, but will explain this later.  I do not know how often I will post, my aim it at least once a week, but this will depend on how busy I am and how much I have to write about.

Well, this concludes my short introduction and trial of WordPress's capabilities and ease of use (so far I am impressed), hopefully I shall be posting again fairly soon.

Benjamin Moon]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>About</title>
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  <pubDate>Sat, 01 Oct 2011 15:35:50 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[I am a PhD student at the University of Bristol, UK, studying Middle and Late Jurassic ichthyosaurs.  I have been a dinosaurs-and-prehistoric-animals nut since at least the age of three and have no wish to stop now!  My aim with this blog is to spread the word on ichthyosaurs and how much pleasure I get from them.  This will thus revolve around the work that I am doing, my thoughts and progress.

Besides palaeontology, I have a huge love for classical music and listen to, play and compose to my heart's content (which is, cumulatively, quite a lot).  My favourite composers are Jean Sibelius, Gustav Mahler and John Adams, and from this some may  be able to tell that I am very much a lover of twentieth century music (though haven't really got the hang of post-1980 pop).  I play tuba, piano and have been known to try violin and (infrequently) guitar.

Feel free to <a title="Contact" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/about/contact/">contact me</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>181</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[petrel41]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>hde_tollenaere@zonnet.nl</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi, good news!

I am nominating your blog for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award.

The rules of this blog award are at

http://dearkitty1.wordpress.com/2013/01/22/very-inspiring-blogger-award-thanks-arlen/

Congratulations!]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Apologies</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/apologies/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Nov 2011 12:36:20 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=16</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Apologies to those who have read this and want to hear more, I have another post in the works and plans for others in the future. Keep posted, especially towards the end of the week!

In the meantime, here is a picture of the ichthyosaur <em>Grendelius mordax</em> from the Kimmeridgian (~155.6–150.8 Ma) of Somerset. It is in Bristol Museum and Art Galleries (specimen Ce 16696). I think it's so good, I'll use it in my header!

[caption id="attachment_193" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-193" title="Brachypterygius mordax BRSMG Ce 16696 exhibit" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="224" /></a> A Kimmeridgian ichthyosaur (Grendelius mordax) from Somerset, UK. Housed in Bristol Museum (Ce 16696). This is a composite photograph so not perfectly joined.[/caption]

<strong>Edit</strong>: I made a mistake in my naming of the ichthyosaur above. It is actually <em>Brachypterygius mordax</em>. It was renamed from <em>Grendelius</em> to <em>Brachypterygius</em> by McGowan in 1997 (<em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>17 (2)</strong>, 428–430).

<strong>Edit</strong>: changed to an updated photo, smoothed edges.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurs: what are they?</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 Nov 2011 14:08:12 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=27</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Well, I had planned to write once every week or so, but, as you can see, that hasn’t gone to plan so far.  In theory that should mean that I have a significant amount to write about now, but…

Since last posting, I have (finally) begun my PhD at Bristol University, and after two weeks at university I had finally done a plan for my study; at least the first two years.  I have also completed a funding proposal to the Palaeontological Association to allow me to visit some museums.  This does mean that over the past seven weeks I have actually written something down! which hadn’t happened in the previous four months.  Other than that, most of my time has been spent finding papers to read, and then reading them.

Now is probably a good time to start going through some of the basics of my research project.  The title of the project is ‘Ichthyosaurs of the Late Jurassic’, and I will describe the two main constituents of that title in this and the next post; starting with ichthyosaurs.

The name ‘ichthyosaur’ (ICK-THEE-o-SAWR) comes from the Greek ‘ichthyos’, meaning fish, and ‘sauros’, meaning lizard, so they are ‘fish lizards.’  This name was assigned for this group of animals based upon their striking similarity to fish (see below).  The group, or clade, to which ichthyosaurs belong is variously called Ichthyopterygia or Ichthyosauria and contains 49 valid genera and 75 valid species. (Maisch 2010).  As seen from the photo, ichthyosaurs have an elongate, narrow jaw; occasionally large eyes; four paddle-like limbs, with the forelimbs larger than the hindlimbs, formed by many tessellating finger/foot bones; tail fin defined by a ‘kink’ (apex) it the backbone, with vertebrae on the ventral (frontside) edge (McGowan and Motani 2003).

[caption id="attachment_28" align="alignright" width="1024" caption="A very well preserved ichthyosaur (Stenopterygius) from the Posidonienschiefer of southern Germany showing exceptional preservation and skin outline. Copyright © University of Glasgow/Hunterian Museum (taken with permission from http://www.hmag.gla.ac.uk/Neil/reprods/)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-28" title="Hunterian Museum Stenopterygius An ichthyosaur with soft tissue preservation" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation.jpg?w=1024" alt="" width="1024" height="335" /></a>[/caption]

Ichthyosaurs first appeared in the Lower Triassic (~240 million years ago) as already specialised aquatic animals, probably also with live birth too.  This sudden appearance as such a derived animal has led to much debate over ichthyosaurs origins and how they are related to other vertebrates.  It has been variously suggested that ichthyosaurs are related to the early amphibians and turtles before more recently settling upon a diapsid (a group comprising , among others, lizards, dinosaurs and birds) origin.  Maisch’s (2010) recent attempt to resolve this using two high profile amniote datasets remains places Ichthyosauria within diapsids but is not conclusive on the relationships within.

Triassic ichthyosaurs (e.g. <em>Mixosaurus </em>below, skeletal reconstructions from Sander (2000)) have been the main focus of ichthyosaurs study over the past 30 years as new finds, especially from China, have been uncovered.  These earlier ichthyosaurs, although already highly derived, show a definite progression of evolution through the Triassic.  The most distinctive differences are having more similarly sized fore- and hindlimbs and more elongate tail with less defined apex.

[caption id="attachment_29" align="alignright" width="584" caption="The Triassic ichthyosaur Mixosaurus cornalianus from the southern Alps. The Triassic ichthyosaurs had a less defined tail fin and more similarly sized paddles. Mixosaurus cornalianus had very long neural spines (above the backbone), a feature characteristic to the species. From Sander (2000)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-mixosaurus.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-29" title="Sander 2000 Mixosaurus" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-mixosaurus.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="150" /></a>[/caption]

Following a mass extinction at the end of the Triassic (~200 million years ago), ichthyosaurs with a different form became dominant.  These thunniform (literally ‘tuna-shaped’) ichthyosaurs (e.g. <em>Stenopterygius</em> below) include the famous species <em>Ichthyosaurus</em>, from the Lias rocks of Lyme Regis in Dorset, England, and <em>Stenopterygius</em> from the Posidonienschiefer of southwest Germany which have both been found in huge abundances.  The thunniform ichthyosaurs had the more characteristic fusiform shape, much larger forelimbs and crescent-shaped tail fin.  This morphology is found in all ichthyosaurs until they became extinct.  In the Early Jurassic (~200–~170 million years ago) there was a particularly high diversity, although many of these had a very similar body plan, and so disparity was lower compared to the Late Triassic (Thorne, Ruta and Benton 2011).

[caption id="attachment_31" align="alignright" width="584" caption="Stenopterygius from the Lower Jurassic of southern Germany. This is very commonly found in quarries and is represented by thousands of specimens. The preservation can be so good that the original skin outline and even some of its structure may be seen. This typical thunniform ichthyosaur shows the fusiform shape, larger forelimb and crescent tail typical of Jurassic and Cretaceous species. From Sander (2000)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-stenopterygius.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-31" title="Sander 2000 Stenopterygius" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-stenopterygius.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="187" /></a>[/caption]

In the Middle and Late Jurassic (~170–~145 million years ago) the diversity of ichthyosaurs decreased: the Late Jurassic hosts only ~7 species.  Many of these are known only from a few specimens, however <em>Ophthalmosaurus </em>(see image below)<em>,</em> from the Oxfordian (~160–~155 million years ago) of Europe and America, is know from hundreds of specimens, particularly from the Leeds collection housed dominantly in the Natural History Museum in London.  <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> means ‘eye lizard’ and is so named because it has the largest eye relative to its body size of any known animal.  The Cretaceous (144–65.5 million years ago) ichthyosaurs are almost entirely contained within the genus <em>Platypterygius</em>.  This ichthyosaur has been found worldwide, from Australia to America to the United Kingdom.

[caption id="attachment_30" align="alignright" width="584" caption="The Late Jurassic ichthyosaur Ophthalmosaurus shows much similarity to Stenopterygius. The extremely large eye is characteristic of the genus, although it also features reduced pectoral and pelvic girdles and is more barrel-chested. From Sander (2000)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-ophthalmosaurus.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-30" title="Sander 2000 Ophthalmosaurus" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/sander-2000-ophthalmosaurus.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="225" /></a>[/caption]

The ichthyosaurs became extinct in the middle of the Cretaceous (~90 million years ago), about 30 million years before the dinosaurs.  The reasons for this are unknown and has been hotly debated.  At the same time there were many small extinction events occurring.  Ichthyosaurs were also not very diverse (only <em>Platypterygius </em>remained).  Competition from other groups had increased, particularly with the appearance of mosasaurs, which had a somewhat similar morphology.  It is most like that a combination of these caused the ichthyosaur’s demise.

This has been a, rather long, summary of ichthyosaur evolution through their existence.  Hopefully it has been comprehensible and informative.  Soon (and I mean soon), I will write a basic introduction to geological time (explaining the difference between Triassic, Jurassic and Cretaceous).  After that I plan to describe my PhD plan in more detail and then go on to more specifics of ichthyosaurs: what we know, what we think we do, and what we simply don’t.

<strong>References</strong>

MAISCH, M. W. 2010. Phylogeny, systematics, and origin of the Ichthyosauria—the state of the art. <em>Palaeodiversity</em>, <strong>3</strong>, 151–214.

MCGOWAN, C. and MOTANI, R. 2003. <em>Ichthyopterygia</em>. <em>In</em> SUES, H.-D. (ed.) <em>Handbook of Paleoherpetology</em>, Vol. 8. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Munich, 175 pp.

SANDER, P. M. 2000. Ichthyosauria: their diversity, distribution, and phylogeny. <em>Paläontologische Zeitschrift</em>, <strong>74</strong>, 1–35.

THORNE, P. M., RUTA, M. and BENTON, M. J. 2011. Resetting the evolution of marine reptiles at the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. <em>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</em>, <strong>108</strong>, 8339–8344.]]></content:encoded>
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  <category domain="category" nicename="anatomy"><![CDATA[anatomy]]></category>
  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="evolution"><![CDATA[Evolution]]></category>
  <category domain="category" nicename="evolution"><![CDATA[evolution]]></category>
  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="ichthyosaurs"><![CDATA[ichthyosaurs]]></category>
  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="introduction"><![CDATA[Introduction]]></category>
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  <title>Geological time</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/29/geological-time/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 29 Nov 2011 15:30:28 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=48</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Wow, if all goes well this should be two posts in two days!  I hope you are as impressed as I am.

As I promised in my last post, I am going to explain the other part of my thesis title ‘Ichthyosaurs of the Late Jurassic’, namely the Late Jurassic part.  Many will be familiar with the latter word from Michael Crichton’s wonderful book and the groundbreaking-CGI-including, Spielberg-directed film from 1993 (ironically most of the dinosaurs are from the Cretaceous, but who cares?).

I will start by saying that geological time is vast, and vastly different to what we humans are used to dealing with.  The processes of rock making (usually) are so slow that talking about them on the human time scale of days, years or even millennia quickly becomes cumbersome.  I will be discussing these at a later date.  When dealing with the immense timespans inherent in geology, actually getting an age in the first place for your rock is nigh on impossible itself.

Much geology, and certainly the relevant part for my PhD, works on a scale of millions of years.  For instance, the Jurassic is defined as the period between 199.6±0.6–145.5±4.0 million years ago (Ogg, Ogg and Gradstein 2008).  The units are usually shortened to ‘mya’ or ‘Ma’ (for mega-annum).  As you can see from the upper bound, there can be quite a lot of uncertainty: 8 Ma, but this is still only 5.5% difference.  The Earth is currently believed to be about 4 500 Ma (4.5 billion years or Ga) old.  Life itself is thought to have arisen ~3 800 Ma, originally as single-celled organisms.  More complex life is first found from ~600 Ma whereas the first animals with hard shells are from ~550 Ma.

[caption id="attachment_59" align="alignleft" width="150" caption="The history of the Earth with chronostratigraphic divisions based upon Ogg et al. (2008). Key events are also present and will be added to over time. (Click to view larger version.)"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/earth-system1.jpg"><img class="size-thumbnail wp-image-59" title="Earth Chronostratigraphic Chart" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/earth-system1.jpg?w=150" alt="" width="150" height="19" /></a>[/caption]

To try and coherently explain the length of time involved, it is usually transferred to the timescale of a year: ‘if the whole of Earth history was compressed into one year…’  The crux of this is that you see that life has been around for a long time (since the end of February), but spent most of that time be very simple and solitary.  Complex life doesn’t really manifest itself until the last ¹⁄₇ th of Earth’s history (13 November).  The dinosaurs appear on 11 December and become extinct 15 days later.  Humans appear within the last four hours and I was born less than a second before twelve midnight!

In terms of life, most study is done on the most recent 542 Ma.  This is the time since the ‘Cambrian Explosion’ where there was a surge in diversity and increase in preservation potential due to the evolution of hard body parts, such as shells and skeletons.  My study will be focussed on the Jurassic Period (200–146 Ma) particularly to last 20 Ma.  I will also look at ichthyosaurs from their whole span in the Mesozoic era (~240–~90 Ma).

<strong>References</strong>

OGG, J. G., OGG, G. and GRADSTEIN, F. M. 2008. <em>The Concise Geologic Time Scale</em>. Cambridge University Press, New York, 184 pp.

Source data for the chart above can be found <a title="International Stratigraphic Chart" href="http://www.stratigraphy.org/column.php?id=Chart/Time%20Scale" target="_blank">here</a>.]]></content:encoded>
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  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="introduction"><![CDATA[Introduction]]></category>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Alex Dunhill]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_author_IP>137.222.85.111</wp:comment_author_IP>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Nice blog. You should get it linked to the department webpage or even the faculty press office. They love this sort of stuff!]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Headers</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/headers/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 30 Nov 2011 11:33:23 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?page_id=65</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[As this site develops, I will be sure to add new headers and many interesting pictures to enliven the pages.  This will be the page where I will list the images, describe what they are and give credit where necessary.

<strong><em>Brachypterygius ("Grendelius") mordax</em></strong>

[caption id="attachment_201" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/cropped-brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit1.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-201" title="cropped-brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit1.jpg" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/cropped-brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit1.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="156" /></a> Brachypterygius mordax composite photo of specimen Ce 16696 from Bristol Museum and Art Gallery.[/caption]

The first image I put up, included within the <a title="Apologies" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/23/apologies/" target="_blank">apologies</a> post, is the nearly completespecimen of <em>Brachypterygius mordax</em> housed in Bristol Museum and Art Gallery (specimen Ce 16696).  This image is a composite of four photographs that I took looking through the glass in the museum, hence the wonderfully jaunty angle.

<strong><em>Stenopterygius</em></strong>

[caption id="attachment_41" align="alignright" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-41" title="cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1.jpg" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-hunterian-museum-stenopterygius-an-ichthyosaur-with-soft-tissue-preservation1.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="168" /></a> Stenopterygius quadriscissus from the Posidonienschiefer of southern Germany. Image from the Hunterian Museum courtesy of Neil Clark.[/caption]

The second image, from my <a title="Ichthyosaurs: what are they?" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/11/28/ichthyosaurs-what-are-they/" target="_blank">introduction to ichthyosaurs</a> post of Stenopterygius taken from the Hunterian Museum (<a title="Hunterian Museum images" href="http://www.hmag.gla.ac.uk/Neil/reprods/" target="_blank">http://www.hmag.gla.ac.uk/Neil/reprods/</a>), with the permission of Neil clark.  This specimen in exquisitely preserved and shows the skin outline.

<strong>International Stratigraphic Chart</strong>

[caption id="attachment_45" align="alignright" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-45" title="cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-stratigraphic-chart-section-skew.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="168" /></a> A section of the International Stratigraphic Chart by Gabi Ogg. Angled to make it look even more beautiful.[/caption]

I have also included a section of the International Stratigraphic Chart created by Gabi Ogg and taken from the ICS website at <a title="ICS Strat Chart" href="http://stratigraphy.org/column.php?id=Chart/Time%20Scale" target="_blank">http://stratigraphy.org/column.php?id=Chart/Time%20Scale</a>.  This September 2010 version is copyright © 2010 International Commission on Stratigraphy.

<strong>Charmouth from Lyme Regis</strong>

[caption id="attachment_44" align="alignright" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-photo-4.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-44" title="cropped-photo-4.jpg" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/cropped-photo-4.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="168" /></a> A view towards Charmouth and the black Liassic cliffs eastward. Taken from the western end of Lyme Regis, standing on a terrace![/caption]

This image was taken by myself during a conference in Lyme Regis, from the terrace of the house I was staying in.  Yes! it really was right on the beach!  I must thank Mark Witton for organising the house and making the initial payment to allow us to stay.  And for putting up with myself during that week (although I wasn't as bad as Nathan).

<strong>Weymouth Bay Pliosaur</strong>

[caption id="attachment_157" align="alignright" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/wbp-banner.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-157" title="WBP banner" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/11/wbp-banner.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="168" /></a> The Weymouth Bay Pliosaur in dorsal (left) and right lateral (right, the image has been flipped horizontally to fit) views.[/caption]

While not strictly and ichthyosaur, this is a phenomenal specimen of a (fairly closely — probably) related group.  The skull alone is over two metres long and has been superbly prepared and presented on a wonderful mount.  This can be seen in Dorset County Museum, Dorchester.]]></content:encoded>
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<item>
  <title>My PhD plans: Part 1: a new ichthyosaur</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 07 Dec 2011 12:57:46 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Well, having given a presentation on the plans for my PhD, I feel as though I can now share it with the world.  That and I’ve had agreement on what I plan to do and how I plan to do.  Thus, here is an edited pseudo-transcript (mostly made up) on my PhD plans for the next year or so.  This will be in the form of three posts:
<ul>
	<li>Part 1: a new ichthyosaur</li>
	<li><a title="My PhD: Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/">Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back</a></li>
	<li><a title="My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/">Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs</a></li>
</ul>
My thesis is based upon an unpublished thesis of Angela Kirton (1983).  As it stands, it is currently divided into two main projects.  These will certainly lead on to several further projects.  The initial part is to redescribe the three genera (group of species) of Late Jurassic ichthyosaurs from Great Britain.  Concurrent with this, I will be comparing the three main phylogenetic analyses from 1999<em>a</em> (Motani) and 2000 (Maisch and Matzke; Sander).

<strong>Summary</strong>

As these posts will be quite long, I will put a small summary at the beginning of each.  This way you can get the gist and come back to the details later.

The first part of my PhD will be to describe the three genera of Late Jurassic ichthyosaurs from Britain:
<ul>
<ul>
	<li><em>Ophthalmosaurus</em></li>
	<li><em>Brachypterygius</em></li>
	<li><em>Nannopterygius</em></li>
</ul>
	<li>These can be identified based upon features of the skull and forelimb:
<ul>
	<li><em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> has a very large eye</li>
	<li><em>Brachypterygius</em> has three equal-sized facets on the humerus</li>
	<li><em>Nannopterygius</em> has very tiny paddles</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<strong>Ichthyosaur basics</strong>

[Specimen abbreviations: BMNH—Natural History Museum, London (originally British Museum (Natural History))]

There are a few small things that I must clear up and add from my ‘Introduction to ichthyosaurs’ blog.  Firstly, how we describe different parts of vertebrates, and where the features of interest are (fig. 1).

The front of the animal (where the head is) is called anterior.  The rear, or tail end, is posterior: your hands are anterior to your legs.  The belly-side is ventral whereas the back is dorsal: your spine is dorsal to your belly button.  Each side is called the right or left lateral side: your right hand is on the right lateral side.  Closer to the body is proximal whereas distal is farther: your hand is distal to your elbow.

[caption id="attachment_76" align="alignright" width="584" caption="Fig. 1 Reconstruction of Ophthalmosaurus icenicus (length about 3.3 m; modified from Kirton 1983)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-icenicus-reconstruction.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-76" title="Ophthalmosaurus icenicus reconstruction" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-icenicus-reconstruction.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="162" /></a>[/caption]

The ichthyosaurs that I am looking at show different features of the skull and paddle.  In the skull, the size of the eye is the most obvious difference.  The forepaddle (arm) varies in relative size, as do the number and size of the distal facets (concave faces) on the humerus (fig. 2).

[caption id="attachment_75" align="alignleft" width="350" caption="Fig. 2 Right forepaddle of Ophthalmosaurus icenicus from the Oxford Clay of Peterborough (BMNH R3702; length about 650 mm) in dorsal view. Note the three facets on the distal end of the humerus and the large number of digits (arab numerals) and phalanges (roman numerals). The anterior- and posteriormost digits are accessory digits (modified from Kirton 1983)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-75 " title="Ophthalmosaurus BMNH R3702 RfpD" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-bmnh-r3702-rfpd.jpg" alt="" width="350" height="742" /></a>[/caption]

Ichthyosaurs can have many digits (fingers) and phalanges (finger bones).  Humans have five digits on each hand, each with three phalanges (the thumb has two).  Some ichthyosaurs could have eight digits, each with over 20 phalanges.  Oddly enough, these are not all the same as our five fingers.  <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> (fig. 2) has six digits and up to nine phalanges on each.  The middle four digits (fig. 2, numbered) are analogous to ours.  However, the other two are ‘accessory digits’ from different origins.  These definitions will be important in describing the ichthyosaurs below.

<strong>British Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs</strong>

The three ichthyosaur genera from the British Late Jurassic are: <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>, <em>Brachypterygius</em> and <em>Nannopterygius</em>.<em> </em> I will give the most visible differences of these.

<strong><em>Ophthalmosaurus</em></strong> (oph-THAL-mo-SORE-us) is found in the Oxford Clay of the Callovian and Oxfordian stages (~162–~155 Ma).  Some possible remains are from the Kimmeridgian Stage (~155.6–150.8 Ma).  As the name suggests, this ichthyosaur is famous for having a large eye (‘ophthalmo-’ is from the Latin for eye; fig. 3).  It is the largest eye compared to body size known (Motani 1999<em>b</em>)!  The humerus has three distal facets.  These articulate with the pre-axial accessory digit, the radius and the ulna (Seeley 1874; Kirton 1983; McGowan and Motani 2003).  The anterior facet is the smallest.  The posteriormost is oblique to the other two.

<strong><em>
</em></strong>

[caption id="attachment_77" align="alignright" width="584" caption="Fig. 3 Skull of Ophthalmosaurus icenicus showing the very large orbit, where the eye sits (based upon BMNH R3893 &amp; R 4753; length about 800 mm). The ring of bones (sclerotic ring) would have kept the shape of the eye and assisted in focussing underwater. Modified from McGowan and Motani (2003)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-mcg-mot-2003-sk.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-77" title="Ophthalmosaurus McG Mot 2003 Sk" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ophthalmosaurus-mcg-mot-2003-sk.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="178" /></a>[/caption]

<em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em>, the single British species, is the most common Late Jurassic ichthyosaur.  Many specimens have been found near Peterborough, collected by the Leeds brothers in the last half of the 19<sup>th</sup> Century.  The Leeds’ Collection was largely donated to the Natural History Museum in London, but parts went to museums around the UK.

<strong><em>Brachyterygius</em> </strong>(BRACK-ip-ter-I-gi-us)<strong> </strong>is known from the Kimmeridgian (~155.6–150.8 Ma) of Dorset but there are also some possible finds from the Purbeck Beds (Lower Cretaceous, ~143 Ma) (Ensom <em>et al.</em> 2009) and even later (Lydekker 1888; McGowan and Motani 2003).  This genus was originally described from a forepaddle (fig. 4).  <em>Brachypterygius</em>’s paddle also has three distal facets on the humerus, each is subequally sized and oblique to each other (McGowan 1997).  These facets articulate (anterior to posterior) with the radius, (unusually) intermedium and ulna.  As with <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> there are four digits with one pre- and one post-axial accessory digit.

[caption id="attachment_73" align="alignleft" width="350" caption="Fig. 4 Brachypterygius extremes forepaddle showing the three equally sized distal humeral facets articulating with the radius, intermedium and ulna. Specimen BMNH R3177 (length about 400 mm; modified from Kirton 1983)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd.jpg"><img class=" wp-image-73 " title="Brachypterygius BMNH R3177 RfpD" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/brachypterygius-bmnh-r3177-rfpd.jpg" alt="" width="350" height="599" /></a>[/caption]

A skull in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge, described as <em>Grendelius</em>, was suggested to be <em>Brachypterygius</em>.  This was confirmed by a specimen in Bristol Museum.  This whole body specimen posses the skull of <em>Grendelius</em> with the forepaddle of <em>Brachypterygius </em>(McGowan 1997).  Because of this, <em>Grendelius</em> was renamed <em>Brachypterygius</em> (the earlier name gets precedence).  There are two species of <em>Brachypterygius </em>from the British Late Jurassic: <em>B. extremus</em> (the original) and <em>B. mordax</em> (originally Grendelius; McGowan 1997).

<strong><em>Nannopterygius</em> </strong>(NAN-op-ter-I-gi-us) is the most uncommon, and unusual, of British Late Jurassic ichthyosaurs.  Only one whole body specimen, and one forepaddle, is known.  As the ‘nanno-’ in the name suggests, there is something small on this ichthyosaur: the paddles (see fig. 5; Hulke 1871).  <em>Nannopterygius</em> has significantly reduced fore- and hindpaddles (McGowan and Motani 2003).  These contain less than half the number of bones of other ichthyosaurs.  The humerus of <em>Nannopterygius</em> is also different from <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> and <em>Brachypterygius</em>: it has only two distal facets.  These articulate with the radius and ulna (McGowan and Motani 2003).  The single British species, <em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon</em>, is from the Kimmeridgian of Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset (Hulke 1871).

<strong><em>
</em></strong>

[caption id="attachment_74" align="alignleft" width="584" caption="Fig. 5 Nannopterygius enthekiodon from the Kimmeridge Clay of Dorset (specimen BMNH 46497; length about 3.5 m). Note the very small paddles compared to the rest of the body. Modified from McGowan and Motani (2003)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-74" title="Nannopterygius McG Mot 2003 body" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/nannopterygius-mcg-mot-2003-body.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="337" /></a>[/caption]

<strong>Rationale</strong>

Whereas <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> has a lot of material available, <em>Brachypterygius</em> and <em>Nannopterygius</em> are known from only a few good specimens each.  These were described when first found, in the late 19<sup>th</sup> and early 20<sup>th</sup> centuries, but briefly, and have escaped extended descriptions since.  The largest recent work was done by Angela Kirton (1983) in her PhD thesis but is unpublished.  The recent surge in ichthyosaur interest, particularly in this millennium, has meant that the need for definite and accurate descriptions has increased.  This is especially important for conducting phylogenetic analyses, which is what I will talk about in my next post.

<strong>References</strong>

ENSOM, P. C., CLEMENTS, R. G., FEIST-BURKHARDT, S., MILNER, A. R., CHITOLIE, J., JEFFERY, P. A. and JONES, C. 2009. The age and identity of an ichthyosaur reputedly from the Purbeck Limestone Group, Lower Cretaceous, Dorset, southern England. <em>Cretaceous Research</em>, <strong>30</strong>, 699–709.

HULKE, J. W. 1871. Note on an <em>Ichthyosaurus</em> (<em>I. enthekiodon</em>) from Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset. <em>Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society</em>, <strong>27</strong>, 440–441.

KIRTON, A. M. 1983. <em>A review of British Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs</em>. Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 239 pp.

LYDEKKER, R. 1888. Note on the classification of the Ichthyopterygia (with a notice of two new species). <em>Geological Magazine</em>, <strong>5</strong>, 309–313.

MAISCH, M. W. and MATZKE, A. T. 2000. The Ichthyosauria. <em>Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie)</em>, <strong>298</strong>, 1–160.

MCGOWAN, C. 1997. The taxonomic status of <em>Grendelius mordax</em>: a preliminary report. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>17</strong>, 428–430.

MCGOWAN, C. and MOTANI, R. 2003. <em>Ichthyopterygia</em>. <em>In</em> SUES, H.-D. (ed.) <em>Handbook of Paleoherpetology</em>, Vol. 8. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Munich, 175 pp.

MOTANI, R. 1999<em>a</em>. Phylogeny of the Ichthyopterygia. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>19</strong>, 473–496.

MOTANI, R. 1999<em>b</em>. Large eyeballs in diving ichthyosaurs. <em>Nature</em>, <strong>402</strong>, 747.

SANDER, P. M. 2000. Ichthyosauria: their diversity, distribution, and phylogeny. <em>Paläontologische Zeitschrift</em>, <strong>74</strong>, 1–35.

SEELEY, H. G. 1874. On the pectoral arch and fore limb of <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>, a new ichthyosaurian genus from the Oxford Clay. <em>Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society</em>, <strong>30</strong>, 696–707]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>14</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Aubrey Roberts]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>aubreyjr@student.bio.uio.no</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_author_IP>129.240.33.78</wp:comment_author_IP>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi Benjamin 
Your blog is great! 
I am graduate student from the Natural History Museum at the University of Oslo, descibing a new species of Upper Jurassic ichthyosaur from Svalbard and comparing it to Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs from the UK. Would love to hear more about  your work, contact me if you would like to hear more about Svalbards ichthyosaurs. We have an exciting collection here. =)
Aubrey
email: aubreyjr@student.bio.uio.no]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul de la Salle]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>paul.delasalle@ntlworld.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi Benjamin

Great to see the work that you are doing and all the detailed information you're putting on this blog. 

Re. Kirton's drawing of the Ophthalmosaurus paddle, I believe this is based on specimen R3702. This has been figured by Andrews and appears in a photo in Motani's orange bible with a different arrangement of phalanges in each case. Kirton states that R3702 consists of complete right and left paddles.  Andrews shows a paddle with far fewer phalanges in fig. 37 of his descriptive catalogue and states this is 'one of the best specimens carefully mounted by Mr. Leeds as found in the rock ...' Although I appreciate that the number of phalanges is probably somewhat variable I think it would be worthwhile re-examining R3702 to see whether phalanges from both paddles have been included in the drawing of the specimen as figured by Kirton. I don't know whether paddle material from R3702 is included in the famous mounted O. in the main hall at the BM but the flippers on that chimera seem to have fewer finger bones. 

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul de la Salle]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>paul.delasalle@ntlworld.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben

Thanks for your observations and all the info. Agree with all you say. It will be very interesting to see what you find out. Please keep us posted.

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>29</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benmoon@btinternet.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>137.222.114.243</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-01-19 15:31:13</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Paul,

Thank you for you comment.

Re. R3702, Kirton did say it was part of the mounted skeleton (in the caption to her whole body reconstruction, fig.35). Motani, in the 'orange bible' (wonderful name which I must steal) states 'not on mounted skeleton' in pl.17 caption. Whether this means permanently or just for that photo I do not know. The problem phalangeal number is the preservation quality, as they are easily lost; many other paddles have nowhere near the same number as R3702. However, it wouldn't surprise me if sharing of phalanges had occurred; examples of similar have happened. I plan to go to London possibly within the next month and so will check this out. There are a few paddle specimens there for me to compare.

Thanks for the heads up, and hope you continue to enjoy the blog.

Ben]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <title>My PhD: Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 13 Dec 2011 12:43:36 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=91</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[In the last post, I talked about the British Late Jurassic ichthyosaurs.  This will make up the first part of my thesis.  The other main part will look at ichthyosaur phylogeny.  The last part will be about further projects that arise from these.
<ul>
	<li><a title="My PhD plans: Part 1: a new ichthyosaur" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/">Part 1: a new ichthyosaur</a></li>
	<li>Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back</li>
	<li><a title="My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/">Part 3: return of the ichthyosaurs</a></li>
</ul>
<strong>Summary</strong>
<ul>
	<li>Three phylogenetic analyses were published in 1999–2000 (Motani 1999; Maisch and Matzke 2000; Sander 2000).</li>
	<li>Though many parts are similar, there are many differences in data and results.</li>
	<li>I will carry out an amalgamative analysis of these three studies in a similar fashion to Ketchum and Benson’s (2010) study on the Plesiosauria.</li>
</ul>
First things first: what is phylogeny?

<strong>Phylogeny</strong>

Phylogenetics is the study of the relationships between organisms and their evolutionary paths.  Phylogenetic studies of several taxa measure similarities between defined characters.  These characters can be morphological — shape of bones, leaves etc. — or molecular — the sequence of bases in DNA or proteins.  Proteins and DNA aren’t preserved for more than about 10 000 years.  Studies on fossil groups thus usually use morphological data.

[caption id="attachment_93" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Table 1 Data matrix for five taxa (A–E) with 10 characters (1–10). All characters except five are two-state — character five is three-state. Uncertainty is indicated by ‘?’ and missing data by ‘-’."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/phylo-matrix.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-93" title="Phylo matrix" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/phylo-matrix.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="227" /></a>[/caption]

The character data are put into a data matrix.  In table 1, the species (letters) are in rows, the characters (numerals) in columns.  The coding for character is given by the numerals in the matrix.  “0”, “1”, “2” etc. for different character states, “?” is unknown and “-“ means missing data.  The matrix can then be used for cladistic analysis, usually by software program.  Cladistic analysis uses shared characters between organisms to work out common ancestors.  Analyses use parsimony to find the fewest character changes between taxa.  The hypothetical relationships can then be printed to a <em>cladogram</em> (fig. 1).

[caption id="attachment_92" align="alignright" width="178" caption="Fig. 1 Example cladogram created from the matrix in table 1 using PHYLIP 3.69 (Felsenstein 2009). This analysis shows that E and B are closely related and most derived. Their clade, A and C could not be resolved fully, resulting in a polytomy. D is the least derived. D is the outgroup to all others. Also, A, C and D is the outgroup to B and E."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/cladogram-example.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-92" title="cladogram example" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/cladogram-example.jpg?w=178" alt="" width="178" height="300" /></a>[/caption]

Cladograms show a hypothetical ‘family tree’ for the organisms in the phylogenetic study.  Each branching shows a <em>divergence</em>from a common ancestor.  Taxa on adjacent branches are more closely related than those separated by branches.  Species on the lower branches are the <em>outgroup</em> whereas the inner branches contain the <em>ingroup</em>.  Ingroup taxa contain a character that the outgroup taxa do not — a <em>synapomorphy</em> (<em>apomorphy</em> for a single taxon).  A character shared by the ingroup and outgroup is a <em>plesiomorphy</em>.  The same character evolving separately is called convergence or <em>homoplasy</em>.

<strong>Ichthyosaur phylogeny</strong>

At the turn of this millennium, three phylogenies of ichthyosaurs were published (Motani 1999; Maisch and Matzke 2000; Sander 2000).  These were the first to look at the whole of the Ichthyosauria/Ichthyopterygia.  Previous analyses had largely looked at Triassic taxa (e.g. Mazin 1982).

As these analyses were published so close to one another, each did not know of each other’s work.  Thus, there are differences in the characters and codings used in these papers.  Maisch and Matzke’s (2000) and Sander’s (2000) papers were published later enough to allow for comment on Motani’s (1999).  Both of these compare their results to Motani’s.  However, only Maisch and Matzke noted the numerous similarities between their characters and those of Motani’s.  Maisch and Matzke were also able to incorporate characters from Motani that they did not have.  As is to be expected from three independent analyses, the results differ in various places (fig. 2).  Maisch (2010) discusses the main differences between them.

[caption id="attachment_94" align="alignleft" width="1024" caption="Fig. 2 Three phylogenies of ichthyosaurs proposed in 1999–2000. A from Motani (1999), B modified from Sander (2000) and C from Maisch and Matzke (2000). Names on the right indicate the taxa involved in the analysis. Names of clades are given in A and B. Clade number are given at branchings in C. Temno. refers to Temnodontosaurus, a Lower Jurassic ichthyosaur."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ichthyosaur-cladograms-1999e280932000.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-94" title="Ichthyosaur cladograms 1999–2000" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2011/12/ichthyosaur-cladograms-1999e280932000.jpg?w=1024" alt="" width="1024" height="961" /></a>[/caption]

Subsequent descriptions of ichthyosaurs have often included a phylogenetic analysis.  These are usually based upon Motani’s (1999) analysis, modified to accept new taxa and character modifications.  The presence of three conflicting phylogenetic hypotheses is unsettling.  A similar situation was found in the related Plesiosauria.  These were another Mesozoic marine reptile group, including the four-flippered plesiosaurs and pliosaurs.  This was recently discussed by Ketchum and Benson (2010).

Ketchum and Benson (2010) looked at two global scale and 11 small scale phylogenetic analyses of the Plesiosauria.  Their critical analysis considered:
<ul>
	<li>Taxa used (66): increased number likely increases the accuracy of the phylogenetic hypothesis.</li>
	<li>Characters (178): all characters were re-examined based upon observation.</li>
	<li>Character coding: hierarchical (discrete or ‘conventional’) coding was deemed most appropriate; where continuous codings were used, gap-weighting (Thiele 1993) was use to ‘discretise’ the codings.</li>
	<li>Analysis: the Parsimony Ratchet system of Nixon (1999) was used to allow searching through the large matrix; heuristic and consensus searches were then completed using PAUP* Version 4.0β10 (Swofford 2002).</li>
</ul>
My plan is to use similar techniques upon all ichthyosaur cladistic analyses to date.  The initial study will look to rectify the differences between Motani (1999), Maisch and Matzke (2000) and Sander (2000).  These incorporate previous analyses, but I will look at pre-1999 studies to assess the characters that may have been removed subsequently.  I shall also look at subsequent studies to assess modifications and the how my amalgamation of Motani, Maisch and Matzke and Sander affects them.

This concludes the second project within my thesis.  Next time I will look at the further projects that will result from this, and the previous studies.

<strong>References</strong>

FELSENSTEIN, J. 2009. <em>PHYLIP: Phylogeny inference package</em>. University of Washington, USA. Downloaded from <a href="http://evolution.gs.washington.edu/phylip.html">http://evolution.gs.washington.edu/phylip.html</a> on 18 November 2009.

KETCHUM, H. F. and BENSON, R. B. J. 2010. Global interrelationships of Plesiosauria (Reptilia, Sauropterygia) and the pivotal role of taxon sampling in determining the outcome of phylogenetic analyses. <em>Biological Reviews</em>, <strong>85</strong>, 361–392.

MAISCH, M. W. 2010. Phylogeny, systematics, and origin of the Ichthyosauria—the state of the art. <em>Palaeodiversity</em>, <strong>3</strong>, 151–214.

MAISCH, M. W. and MATZKE, A. T. 2000. The Ichthyosauria. <em>Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie)</em>, <strong>298</strong>, 1–160.

MAZIN, J.-M. 1982. Affinités et phylogénie des Ichthyopterygia. <em>Geobios</em>, <strong>6</strong>, 85–98.

MOTANI, R. 1999. Phylogeny of the Ichthyopterygia. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>19</strong>, 473–496.

NIXON, K. C. 1999. The parsimony ratchet, a new method for rapid parsimony analysis. <em>Cladistics</em>, <strong>15</strong>, 407–414.

SANDER, P. M. 2000. Ichthyosauria: their diversity, distribution, and phylogeny. <em>Paläontologische Zeitschrift</em>, <strong>74</strong>, 1–35.

SWOFFORD, D. 2002.<em> PAUP*: Phylogenetic Analysis Using Parsimony</em>. Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, Massachusetts, USA.

THIELE, K. 1993. The holy grail of the perfect character: the cladistic treatment of morphometric data. <em>Cladistics</em>, <strong>9</strong>, 275–304.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Links</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/links/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 04 Jan 2012 13:51:21 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?page_id=104</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Here are some good links to further information on ichthyosaurs and palaeontology in general.

<strong>Blogs and websites</strong>
<ul>
	<li><a title="Tetrapod Zoology" href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/">Tetrapod Zoology</a> is blog on all things tetrapod-y, and much more beside. Written by Dr Darren Naish (University of Southampton, UK), the blog exhibits his enormous love and knowledge of all things four-legged.  It includes 'did you know...?' pieces as well as reviews and notices of recently published papers.</li>
	<li>Ryosuke Motani has authored many important ichthyosaur papers, including the first large-scale phylogeny in 1999.  His <a title="Motani's Ichthyosaur Page" href="http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/people/motani/ichthyo/index.html" target="_blank">Ichthyosaur Page</a> contains much information on the group.  It has not been updated since 2000 but remains an excellent resource.  For more information see his <a title="Motani Homepage" href="http://ryosuke.motani.name/" target="_blank">home page</a>.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Societies</strong>

Unfortunately there are no ichthyosaur specific societies (yet!), but more general vertebrate and palaeontology societies do provide a good amount of information.
<ul>
	<li>The <a title="SVP" href="http://www.vertpaleo.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home" target="_blank">Society of Vertebrate Paleontology</a> is the home of vertebrate palaeontology. It was founded in 1940 and has grown a lot since.  From 1981 it has published the <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, which includes papers on all vertebrate groups, from fish to dinosaurs and more.  This is the most common publishing medium to find ichthyosaurs in.</li>
	<li>The <a title="PalAss" href="http://www.palass.org/" target="_blank">Palaeontological Association</a> is Britain's main society for palaeontology.  Founded in 1957, it publishes the Journal <em>Palaeontology</em> on any and all aspects of the science.</li>
	<li>The <a title="GeolSoc Lond" href="http://www.geolsoc.org.uk/index.html" target="_blank">Geological Society of London</a> the oldest geological society in the world.  As the main UK centre for geology for over 200 years it has been the first to report many important finds.  The <em>Journal of the Geological Society</em> includes the first published descriptions of ichthyosaurs.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Journals</strong>

<strong></strong>Several journals are a good source of ichthyosaur papers. Worth mentioning are the <em><a title="JVP" href="http://www.vertpaleo.org/JVP/1855.htm" target="_blank">Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</a></em>, the open access <em><a title="PLoS ONE" href="http://www.plosone.org/home.action" target="_blank">PLoS ONE</a></em> and important papers which appear in <em><a title="Science" href="http://www.sciencemag.org/" target="_blank">Science</a></em> and <em><a title="Nature" href="http://www.nature.com/" target="_blank">Nature</a></em>.

<em>PLoS ONE</em> can be access for free by anyone.  <em>Science</em>, <em>Nature</em> and the <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em> can be freely accessed by members and subscribed institutions.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 05 Jan 2012 15:13:23 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=114</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[In this, the final of my original trilogy describing my planned studies, I will talk about the ‘spin-offs’ from looking at the British genera and phylogeny.  The other posts are:
<ul>
	<li><a title="My PhD plans: Part 1: a new ichthyosaur" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/">Part 1: a new ichthyosaur</a></li>
	<li><a title="My PhD: Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/">Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back</a></li>
	<li>Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs</li>
</ul>
This blog will look at two subsequent projects in my thesis.  The first, a disparity analysis, follows from the descriptive and phylogenetic work.  The second, biomechanics, follows mainly from the descriptions.

<strong>Summary</strong>
<ul>
	<li>Disparity is the study of variance
<ul>
	<li>Ichthyosaurs showed varying levels of disparity through their existence</li>
	<li>High disparity did not always mean high diversity</li>
</ul>
</li>
	<li>Biomechanics is the study of animal movement
<ul>
	<li>Finite Element Analysis (FEA) is a powerful tool to study this</li>
	<li>Studies on skulls can tell a lot about animals’ feeding strategies</li>
	<li>Ichthyosaurs have yet to be studied using FEA</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
<strong>Disparity analysis</strong>

Disparity is the study of variation within a group of organisms.  This is different from diversity, which looks at classification and systematics.  Disparity uses variation to estimate differences in the ecology of an organism: how it lives in, and interacts with its environment.  The two can be interlinked — greater disparity may indicate greater diversity, and <em>vice versa</em>.  This does not always hold true, and ichthyosaurs, being as odd as they are, show a good example of this.

Thorne, Ruta and Benton (2011) looked at ichthyosaurs over the Triassic–Jurassic boundary (TJB; ~200 Ma).  Using morphospace plots — charts that show morphological variation — they showed that post-TJB ichthyosaurs had a lower disparity than pre-TJB ichthyosaurs (fig. 1).  The TJB marks the spread of the thunnisaur (tuna-shaped) ichthyosaurs.

[caption id="attachment_115" align="alignright" width="206" caption="Fig. 1 Ichthyosaur disparity decreased over the TJB more than diversity. From Thorne et al. 2011."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/thorne-et-al-disparity.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-115" title="Thorne et al disparity" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/thorne-et-al-disparity.jpg?w=206" alt="" width="206" height="300" /></a>[/caption]

The method used in this type of study is fairly simple: measure various dimensions of the organisms.  These can include length, width, height, radius, curvature etc. of individual bones, or body parts.  The data are then compared using computer algorithms that assess the influence of each aspect of variation.  This is usually spat out as a matrix of seemingly meaningless numbers.  These numbers can then be plotted onto morphospace plots.

Usually, these morphospace plots are two-dimensional.  The algorithms produce variables that show different forms of variation: e.g. longer or shorter, wider or narrower.  These variables can then be plotted as principle coordinates.  The two coordinates with the greatest effect or variation are most frequently chosen.  The data can be further analysed to take all coordinates into account.  A ‘mean sum of ranges’, for instance, is a simple way to show how great is the spread (variable).

<strong>Biomechanical studies</strong>

As I’m sure many of you will have noticed, animals have a tendency to move about.  This can be by walking, running, jumping, swimming and flying.  To do all of these, the animal must use its muscles and skeleton to apply forces through the feet, tail and arms.  When the animal works harder more force is applied: e.g. doing a full press-up is more difficult than bending at the knees.

Using muscles and bones to apply forces, doesn’t just make you move.  The bones themselves bend slightly too.  The greater the forces, the more the bone is deformed.  If the force is too great, the bone breaks.  Studies into bone deformation are one aspect of biomechanics (Rayfield 2007).

In vertebrates, the most interesting applications of biomechanics centre on the skull.  It is here where eating is done.  Also, the large number of bones in the skull makes for complicated, and sometimes unexpected, interactions.  As of writing, there have been no skull-biomechanics studies on ichthyosaurs (that I’ve found).  My research will hopefully change that.

‘Why should you study skull biomechanics?’ I hear you cry.  The skulls tell us a lot about how an animal lived.  In particular, what and how it ate and how it could see.  Sight in ichthyosaurs has been covered by Motani (1999).  Feeding is usually compared to modern dolphins, including the schooling behaviour.  Some ichthyosaur fossils have remains of belemnites — relatives of squid with a hard ‘bullet’ shell — in the stomach region.

Using biomechanics, there have been many changes in perceptions of vertebrate feeding strategies.  Humphries <em>et al.</em> (2007) showed that pterosaurs — a group of flying reptiles, extant during the Mesozoic — could not skim feed.  Skim feeding requires dipping the lower jaw into water then closing the jaws when food is caught.  A pterosaur that tried to skim feed would probably break its bill!

Humphries <em>et al.</em> (2007) used a sequence of calculations to predict the outcome.  A more complex technique used is finite element analysis (FEA).  This has been used in engineering for many years.  Its use in biology and palaeontology is more recent.  One of the major proponents is Dr Emily Rayfield here at the University of Bristol.

FEA uses computer tomography (CT) scans of skulls as a basis model then overlays a mesh composed of an arbitrary number of fixed points.  This model can then be put through computer software that applies forces to it.  It location and direction of the forces is specified, as are any joins, sutures and pivots.  The stress and strain experienced by the model are then calculated (fig. 2).

[caption id="attachment_116" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Fig. 2 Finite Element analysis of three theropod dinosaurs, Coelophysis, Allosaurus, and Tyrannosaurus. Top diagrams show the fossils. Middle diagrams are the surface mesh, arrows show fulcra. Lower diagrams show stresses under FEA analysis, warmer colours indicate higher forces, arrows show force transferral. Modified from Rayfield (2005)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/rayfield-2005-cat.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-116" title="Rayfield 2005 CAT" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/rayfield-2005-cat.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="177" /></a>[/caption]

An advantage of FEA is that it is a more sophisticated technique than simpler rigid bar calculations.  It takes more account of the object’s shape and the variations in strength that this causes.  More accurate responses to the effects of sutures are also possible.  The model and results produced are generally a more accurate representation of real life.

FEA studies have been used to great effect in studying dinosaurs (Rayfield 2004, 2005; Rayfield <em>et al.</em> 2007).  These have been used to show that some that some ‘top predators’ (e.g. <em>Allosaurus</em> and <em>Tyrannosaurus</em>) could not use the same strategy in killing prey.

<strong>References</strong>

HUMPHRIES, S., BONSER, R. H. C., WITTON, M. P. and MARTILL, D. M. 2007. Did pterosaurs feed by skimming? Physical modelling and anatomical evaluation of an unusual feeding method. <em>PLoS Biology</em>, <strong>5</strong>, 1647–1655.

MOTANI, R. and (null). 1999. Large eyeballs in diving ichthyosaurs. <em>Nature</em>, <strong>402</strong>, 747.

RAYFIELD, E. J. 2005. Aspects of comparative cranial mechanics in the theropod dinosaurs <em>Coelophysis</em>, <em>Allosaurus</em> and <em>Tyrannosaurus</em>. <em>Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society</em>, <strong>144</strong>, 309–316.

—— 2004. Cranial Mechanics and Feeding in Tyrannosaurus rex. <em>Proceedings of the Royal Society of London Series B-Biological Sciences</em>, <strong>271</strong>, 1451–1459.

—— 2007. Finite Element Analysis and understanding the biomechanics and evolution of living and fossil organisms. <em>Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences</em>, <strong>35</strong>, 541–576.

——, MILNER, A. C., XUAN, V. B. and YOUNG, P. G. 2007. Functional Morphology of Spinosaur “Crocodile-Mimic” Dinosaurs. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>27</strong>, 892–901.

THORNE, P. M., RUTA, M. and BENTON, M. J. 2011. Resetting the evolution of marine reptiles at the Triassic-Jurassic boundary. <em>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</em>, <strong>108</strong>, 8339–8344.
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  <wp:post_date>2012-01-05 15:13:23</wp:post_date>
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  <wp:post_name>my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs</wp:post_name>
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    <wp:comment_id>225</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs | Jordi Marcé-Nogué]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email/>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://jordimarce.wordpress.com/2013/04/16/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>66.135.48.151</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2013-04-16 10:10:04</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2013-04-16 09:10:04</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[...] See on ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com [...]]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurs in the news!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/06/ichthyosaurs-in-the-news/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 06 Jan 2012 10:42:09 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=128</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Hello there!

I hope that you have enjoyed/considered/comprehended the last few posts on my PhD plans.  I've tried to explain simply, but some of the concepts are unusual or obscure.  From next week I plan to 'start again' from the basics of palaeontology and then move on to what vertebrates and evolution etc actually are!

Some of you may have noticed <a title="BBC new German ichthyosaur" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-16432364" target="_blank">this piece</a> on the BBC news site yesterday.  A new paper, <a title="Acamptonectes paper" href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0029234?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+plosone%2FPLoSONE+%28PLoS+ONE+Alerts%3A+New+Articles%29" target="_blank">published in online journal PLoS ONE</a>, by Fisher <em>et al.</em> has described a new species of ichthyosaur from the Lower Cretaceous (~130 Ma): <em>Acamptonectes densus</em>.  Darren Naish, one of the coauthors, has written about this on his wonderful <a title="Acamptonectes TetZoo" href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/2012/01/03/cretaceous-ichthyosaur-revolution-part-i/" target="_blank">Tetrapod Zoology</a> blog.

The paper also shows that ichthyosaurs were not as strongly affected by the Jurassic–Cretaceous extinction (JCE) as previously thought.  Ophthalmosaurine thunnisaurs (e.g. <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>) are present either side of the boundary, whereas they were considered to only be present in the Jurassic.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>128</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-01-06 10:42:09</wp:post_date>
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    <wp:comment_id>24</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Jean]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>thilmanyj@asme.org</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://www.asme.org</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>174.20.34.67</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-01-12 19:04:42</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-01-12 19:04:42</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Howdy: I'm a writer for Mechanical Engineering Magazine in the U.S. Writing a story about biomechanics and FEA (and paleontology) wondering if I could speak or ask you a few questions or quote from your blog? I'm at thilmanyj@asme.org]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>A little funny!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/a-little-funny/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 13:15:33 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=131</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Something to keep you smiling. Thanks to Nathan for showing me this. A new palaeontology post will be arriving soon; keep your eyes open!

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WwOI7zILBX8]]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>131</wp:post_id>
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<item>
  <title>What I read today: "On homology"</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/17/what-i-read-today-on-homology/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 17 Jan 2012 17:50:14 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=136</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Here's something new.  I had planned to read many, many papers early in PhD, but so far have only managed to read many.  This 'what I read today' section will hopefully keep me to this.  Here, I will show what I read today, give a short summary and some of my thoughts.  This likely to be a more technically worded section, so feel free to simply pass them by.

<strong>Day One: 17 Jan 2012</strong>

NIXON, K. C. and CARPENTER, J. M. 2011. On homology. <em>Cladistics</em>, <strong>27</strong>, 10 pp., doi: 10.1111/j.1096-0031.2011.00371.x.
<ul>
	<li>Homoplasy is non-homology.</li>
	<li>Homology is the sharing of characters derived from the same phylogenetic origin.</li>
	<li>Homoplasy can be treated as error in the phylogenetic hypothesis of homology — i.e. enforcing a separate origin for e.g. bird and insect wings (function in flight) or bird and platypus bills (morphology) — thus separating homoplasy and analogy in a phylogenetic framework.</li>
	<li>This applies equally to morphological (characters and states) and genomic (position and base) data.</li>
	<li>Parsimony acts to reduced error (homoplasy) in optimisation.</li>
	<li>Homology between single-character states is not tested by cladistic analysis.</li>
</ul>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family:'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif;">This is an informative paper but sometimes ends up being complicatedly worded — and has some awfully long sentences.  Aside from this the logic is fairly easy to follow.  The two main sections of the paper concern the link between homology and plesiomorphy and homoplasy as error.</span>

Of particular interest to me was the 'homoplasy as error' section.  They argue that homoplasy is the erroneous treatment of analogous characters as homologous.  One of the examples used is the wings of insects and birds: although both have the same function (flight) they have very different origins (non-homology).  Having a single character ('has wings') would entail coding both in the positive (1) state.  That possession of wings is coded in a single character is — at least implicitly — a phylogenetic hypothesis of their homology.  Multiple codings — such as 'has insect-type wings' and 'has bird-type wings' in its simplest form — transforms this into a hypothesis of analogy.]]></content:encoded>
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  <wp:post_id>136</wp:post_id>
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<item>
  <title>What I read today: nomenclature and synonymy</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/what-i-read-today-nomenclature-and-synonymy/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2012 17:50:00 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=141</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Today was a much simpler affair that yesterday's 'on homology', and as such is somewhat shorter.

<strong>Day Two: 18 Jan 2012</strong>

MATTHEWS, S. C. 1973. Notes on open nomenclature and on synonymy lists. <em>Palaeontology</em>, <strong>16</strong>, 713–719.
<ul>
	<li>Reviews Richter's (1948) nomenclature proposals.</li>
	<li>These were the additions and placement of characters such as '?', 'aff.' and 'cf.' in the scientific names of organisms.</li>
	<li>He also instigated the use of detailed, critical synonymy lists with the characters used to represent the status of each.</li>
</ul>
<div>Much of this paper is purposed as a translation and implementation of Richter's nomenclature.  The examples used are simple, clear and concise.  Altogether it is a very useful paper for detailing the use of this handy system.</div>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>141</wp:post_id>
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<item>
  <title>My blog so far</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/18/my-blog-so-far/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 18 Jan 2012 18:04:44 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=145</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[There's a great little tool over at wordle.net. It allows to to input text, or set a URL, and will create a world cloud of this — more often used worlds are larger. Here's my blog so far:
<p style="text-align:center;"><a title="Wordle: Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life" href="http://www.wordle.net/show/wrdl/4690711/Ichthyosaurs%3A_a_day_in_the_life"><img class="aligncenter" style="border-color:#dddddd;border-style:solid;border-width:1px;padding:4px;" src="http://www.wordle.net/thumb/wrdl/4690711/Ichthyosaurs%3A_a_day_in_the_life" alt="Wordle: Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life" width="160" height="120" /></a></p>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>145</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-01-18 18:04:44</wp:post_date>
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  <title>Brevis: What on Earth is Palaeontology?</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/31/brevis-what-on-earth-is-palaeontology/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jan 2012 11:26:58 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=150</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[These <em>brevia</em> (using Latin so you can feel even better about reading this blog!) will be a series of short pieces about important or relevant topics that are not the main focus of my work.  As you can see from the title, this will include topics such as a description of palaeontological study and, in the future, a history of study.  The idea is that, writing a shorter article should keep me should keep me going on the writing front.  I’m sure you will have noticed, as I have, that my posting hasn’t been as regular as I had hoped, so this should somewhat alleviate that.

Palaeontology (US paleontology; PAL-ee-on-TOL-oh-jee) is the study of ancient life on Earth.  The name derives from the Greek παλαιός, ὂν and λόγος meaning “study of ancient beings” (OED; Wikipedia).  Modern palaeontology covers a huge range of topics from dinosaurs and ichthyosaurs through the traces left by animals and bacteria to the evolution of the biosphere itself.  Over the past three centuries, this science has evolved as much as the organisms it studies — expect a history in the next <em>brevis</em>.

Modern palaeontology has many fronts and uses.  The main ones, globally and from my point of view, include vertebrate palaeontology, biostratigraphy and palaeoclimatology.

<strong>Vertebrate Palaeontology</strong>

This is possibly the smallest use of palaeontology, yet has the greatest public exposure.  This is largely thanks to the spectacular fossils that vertebrates produce, but also to their appearances in popular culture — e.g. Jurassic Park.  Of course, the most famous prehistoric animals, of any type, are the dinosaurs.  These magnificent grace many musea floors as well as children’s (and in my case, young adult’s) walls and windowsills.  Many people have had many suggestions as to why dinosaurs are so popular.  I’ve heard it said that they represent another position of authority to respect, although annoy and rebel against seems more opt!

Vertebrate palaeontology covers much more than dinosaurs, and ichthyosaurs.  There were many fish, reptiles and amphibians before and since, and many mammals followed after the dinosaurs’ extinction.  Although these are less often seen, they are as, or more, fascinating, particularly in the variety of weird forms that they had.  To give some examples, some early land vertebrates, from ~350 Ma had up to eight toes (<em>Hynerpeton</em>); fish developed heads with inch-thick armour (<em>Dunkleosteus</em>) and others evolved jaws over two metres long (<em>Stretosaurus</em>)!

<strong>Biostratigraphy</strong>

Stratigraphy is one of the basic tools of geology.  Is uses the relationship of the rocks in one place to discover the history of another.  The bio- part in this comes when fossils are used to assist this.  Imagine having a section of rock that contains the fossils A, B and C sequentially, one above the other.  If you then go to another section and find fossil A only, you can line up the sequences.  If you find B and C only, you can again correlate them.

The interesting part comes when you find a sequence with only fossils A and C.  Many things can cause this:
<ul>
	<li>Fossil B did not live there because of e.g. the environment.</li>
	<li>The rock with Fossil B in was not deposited there.</li>
	<li>The rock with Fossil B was deposited, but eroded before the rock with Fossil C was deposited — an unconformity.

[caption id="attachment_151" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Example of correlation over sections using fossils. Each stratum with a certain fossil was deposited at a certain time. The different thicknesses can be caused by different sedimentation rates or the spread of the species itself. Where there is no occurrence, indicates that so sediment was deposited, the species could not colonise that environment or there has been erosion causing an unconformity."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/biostratigraphy.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-151" title="Biostratigraphy" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/01/biostratigraphy.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="224" /></a>[/caption]</li>
</ul>
When working in the real world, stratigraphy is much more complicated than flat beds overlying each other.  The beds are tilted, overlap and phase in and out.  The fossils can also be found at different levels, overlapping and in particular assemblages.  The mix of these defines recognised Biostratigraphical Zones (biozones for short).  Fossils used include the coiled ammonites, fossil pollen and spores and enigmatic creatures called graptolites that became extinct ~250 Ma.  As a tool, biostratigraphy is essential in the oil industry for locating and following possible reservoirs.

<strong>Palaeoclimatology</strong>

Although fossils are not (directly) the most often used evidence for investigating the past climate, which usually falls to isotope analysis, they provide an important key to corroborating this.  Many fossils provide the raw materials for finding the isotopes in the first place.

An oyster, 150 Ma, made its shell out of calcite, a mineral of calcium carbonate.  The calcite was recrystallised from the ions in the sea.  Therefore, the shell represents the (partial) composition of the sea at the time the shell formed.  Many things, including temperature and the size of the ice caps, can affect the sea’s composition, particularly of isotopes.  So looking at the isotopes in this oyster’s shell can allow you to infer the climate 150 Ma.

More directly, fossils can show different climatic regions (~biomes).  By looking at relations and adaptations of modern equivalents it is possible to infer that e.g. this species <em>A</em>, like the tropical species <em>X</em>, lived in the tropics, thus place Y, where it was found, was probably tropical.  This works even better when you find the same species or genus indifferent places — e.g. Hippopotamus fossils have been found in the Thames.  This is good evidence that the Thames, at one time, was warmer than it is today — possibly as warm as sub-Saharan Africa is today!

<strong>Conclusion</strong>

This is only meant to be an introduction into some aspects of palaeontology that are commonly employed today.  There are many more parts that can surely be mentioned at some later date; assuming that I get my act together and start writing regular, eloquently, concisely…  I hope that you are looking forward to them as much as I am.]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>59</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Palaeontology uses | Wishka]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_author_url>http://wishka.shikshik.org/2012/03/31/palaeontology-uses/</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>77.67.81.17</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-03-31 09:35:42</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-03-31 09:35:42</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[...] Brevis: What on Earth is Palaeontology? | Ichthyosaurs: a day in the &#8230;Jan 31, 2012 &#8230; Modern palaeontology has many fronts and uses. The main ones, globally and from my point of view, include vertebrate palaeontology, &#8230; [...]]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Who’s useless at writing a blog: I am!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/02/29/whos-useless-at-writing-a-bog-i-am/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 29 Feb 2012 15:36:10 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=160</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[As I’m sure some of you may have noticed, I haven’t posted any new things recently — this month in fact.  It has been quite a busy time: I’ve taken visits to both London and Dorchester, acquired an ichthyosaur that I am planning to prepare, and spent an inordinate amount of time thinking about <em>cristi supraorbitali</em> and other obscure but important ichthyosaur features.

I also think that I have discovered my most favourite ichthyosaur yet: <em>Besanosaurus leptorhynchus</em> from the Middle Triassic (Upper Anisian–Lower Ladinian) of Besano, northern Italy.  I thank Christiano Dal Sasso for kindly sending me a copy of his and Giovanni Pinna’s paper (Dal Sasso and Pinna 1996).  It features the most wonderful map of the complete specimen (below; from Dal Sasso and Pinna 1996 fig. 8).

[caption id="attachment_161" align="alignright" width="584" caption="Besanosaurus leptorhynchus from the Besano Formation (Grenzbitumenzone) near Besano, northern Italy. From Dal Sasso and Pinna (1996)."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/besanosaurus-map.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-161" title="Besanosaurus map" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/besanosaurus-map.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="670" /></a>[/caption]

In London, I went to the Natural History Museum (NHM), which is a treasure trove of fossils — a palaeontologist’s paradise.  There I looked through some of the Kimmeridgian ichthyosaur material (there’s too much to do in a day!); particularly looking for bits of <em>Nannopterygius</em>.  Aside from the main skeleton on the wall of the Marine Reptile Gallery, there is very little material for this genus.  The isolated hindpaddle was my main concern (below; layout suggested by <a title="SV-POW: Xenoposeidon in all its glory" href="http://svpow.wordpress.com/2011/10/31/xenoposeidon-in-all-its-glory/" target="_blank">SV-POW</a>), but there’s also several vertebrae.

[caption id="attachment_163" align="alignleft" width="584" caption="Isolated hindpaddle of Nannopterygius enthekiodon, from the Kimmeridgian, in most views as suggested on SV-POW. There has been some slight dorsoventral crushing, hence the significant difference in size of the proximal femoral processes. Abbreviations: car: carpal, dp: dorsal process, fem: femur, fib: fibula, int: intermedium, tbl tibiale, tib: tibia, vp: ventral process."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-46497a.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-163" title="NHMUK 46497a" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-46497a.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="536" /></a>[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_162" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Unidentified ‘ichthyosaur’ vertebrae in the collections of the Natural History Museum, London. Still in their plaster wrapping, centra with articulated neural spines."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-162" title="NHMUK 'Nanno' vertebral series" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-nanno-vertebral-series.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="270" /></a>[/caption]

Whilst in the NHM, I also took a look through the drawers and found a nice set of vertebrae, which were unmarked and only partially removed from their cast, and a very crushed skull of <em>Aegirosaurus</em> ‘<em>Ichthyosaurus’ leptospondylus</em> from the Solnhofen Limestone of Germany (Bardet and Fernández 2000): the same place the famous ‘missing link’ <em>Archaeopteryx </em>comes from.

[caption id="attachment_164" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Ichthyosaurs leptopterygius from the Solnhofen Limestone of southern Germany. Significantly crushed, in dorsal view."]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-164 " title="NHMUK Ichthyosaurus leptospondylus" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/nhmuk-ichthyosaurus-leptospondylus.jpg?w=300" alt="" width="300" height="111" /></a>[/caption]

<strong>References</strong>

BARDET, N. and FERNÁNDEZ, M. S. 2000. A new ichthyosaur from the Upper Jurassic lithographic limestones of Bavaria. <em>Journal of Paleontology</em>, <strong>74</strong>, 503–511.

DAL SASSO, C. and PINNA, G. 1996. <em>Besanosaurus leptorhynchus</em> n. gen. n. sp., a new shastasaurid ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic of Besano (Lombardy, N. Italy). <em>Paleontologia Lombarda, New Series</em>, <strong>4</strong>, 1–22.

MCGOWAN, C. and MOTANI, R. 2003. <em>Ichthyopterygia</em>. <em>In</em> SUES, H.-D. (ed.) <em>Handbook of Paleoherpetology</em>. Vol. 8. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Munich, 175 pp.
<div></div>]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>56</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Bow]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>Jonathanbow@hotmAIL.COM</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url/>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>2.24.90.73</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-03-25 11:10:57</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-03-25 11:10:57</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hello Ben, I was wondering if you could take a look at a partial Icthythosaur that I found a Lavernock and let me know your thoughts regarding species. Thanks Jonathan

http://www.discussfossils.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=128&amp;PN=14&amp;title=lavernock-wales    and then the Post: 17 Mar 2012 at 6:07pm]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <wp:comment>
    <wp:comment_id>54</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike Taylor]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>mike@indexdata.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://www.miketaylor.org.uk/dino/pubs/</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>80.229.143.26</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-02-29 22:22:37</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-02-29 22:22:37</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Fantastic to see this form of all-orthogonal-views illustration!]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>55</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benmoon@btinternet.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</wp:comment_author_url>
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    <wp:comment_date>2012-03-01 09:56:13</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Thanks, unfortunately I didn't manage to get a decent distal image. I'll be looking at the Oxford Clay material, so there is likely to be many more to come!]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <wp:comment>
    <wp:comment_id>57</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benmoon@btinternet.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>137.222.114.245</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-03-26 09:37:44</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Jonathan,

That's a great specimen you have there, and you've prepared it very nicely.

Unfortunately, as there is not much material, it is quite a difficult specimen to identify, but the paddle is one of the main diagnostic features, and is present, so it's not impossible. In my opinion, it is probably an Ichthyosaurus, because of the shape of the paddle bones. I cannot see any notches on the bones, also suggesting Ichthyosaurus (although some do have notches). I don't think I can go any further than Ichthyosaurus, because of the material, and that I'm not a complete expert (yet!). There's a decent paper at http://www-alt.naturkundemuseum-bw.de/stuttgart/pdf/b_pdf/B298.pdf which gives much more detail on ichthyosaurs, with drawings of many species at the end.

The size of the sclerotic ring compared to the paddle (which is not complete, but nearly so) makes it likely that this is a juvenile ichthyosaur. These are not uncommon, many have been found in similarly aged rocks from southern Germany, but again makes identification difficult as the bone shape and configuration changes quite a bit during growth.

Hope this helps you a bit, and that you keep finding some good stuff.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>58</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Bow]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>Jonathanbow@hotmAIL.COM</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url/>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>2.24.81.135</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-03-26 17:59:29</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Thanks for the reply and the link to the paper, it'll be very handy!. 

Hope you don't mind me bugging you again, but i was told that roughly ten years ago some people from Bristol Uni, excavated a near complete Ichthyosaur from the planorbis beds at lavernock point, but right at the low tide mark. Do you know if this is true, as I've not seen any records of this find anywhere.]]></wp:comment_content>
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</item>
<item>
  <title>Dinosaur 'news', or 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/04/03/dinosaur-news-or-if-it-aint-broke-dont-fix-it/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 03 Apr 2012 12:21:01 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=175</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[This morning has been somewhat of a dinosaur frenzy for me, and yes that is unusual.  Whilst dinosaurs have been the mainstay of popular natural history for much of the past 200 years, I’ve always preferred their marine neighbours, because I think they’re just better (all opinions are my own and may not reflect truth, although in my mind they do).

Anyway, back to this morning: following my usual routine of looking on various journal sites for interesting papers, I happened to glance at the most recent issue of <em><a title="Geology" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/" target="_blank">Geology</a></em> (vol. 40(4)).  This included three comments, and two replies entitled ‘Direct U–Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico’.

Now, as any seven-year-old will probably be able to tell you, the dinosaurs died out at the end of the Cretaceous, at 65.5 ± 0.3 Ma, then will probably go on the discuss meteorites and other things past the current scope of this post.  All of these letters are in response to <a title="Fassett, Heaman, Simonetta 2011" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/39/2/159.abstract?ijkey=ac2e06ec2185c0209e6c893b838a0499a0352a1b&amp;keytype2=tf_ipsecsha" target="_blank">Fassett, Heaman and Antonio’s (2011)</a> claim that they’ve been able to directly date a dinosaur bone from the Paleocene (after the K–P mass extinction) at 64.8 ± 0.9 Ma, after a test on a bone of ‘known’ age (73.6 ±0.9 Ma).  Stop me if you’ve heard this before (<a title="Fassett 2009" href="http://palaeo-electronica.org/2009_1/149/index.html" target="_blank">Fassett 2009</a>; open access :-))…

The method used by Fassett <em>et al</em>. to date their samples — uranium–lead isotope ratios — was the main criticism by the three comments (<a title="Koenig et al 2012" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e262.full?rss=1" target="_blank">Koenig <em>et al.</em> 2012</a>; <a title="Ludwig 2012" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e258.full?rss=1" target="_blank">Ludwig 2012</a>; <a title="Renne and Goodwin 2012" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e259.full?rss=1" target="_blank">Renne and Goodwin 2012</a>; all open access :-)).  This largely centred around the inaccuracy of the isotopic ratios used (Ludwig 2012) and the seemingly arbitrary selection of results to give a 70–80 Ma result for one of their samples (Koenig <em>et al.</em> 2012; Ludwig 2012).  The other major problem was that the intake of uranium or reworking <em>post mortem</em> was not considered, thereby making the calculated ages minimal estimates for the ages of the bones — which was already very close to the K–P boundary.

Basically, the comments disagree with the precision and accuracy of the age Fassett <em>et al.</em> proposed.

Fassett, Heaman and Simonetti’s replies (2012<em><a title="Fassett et al 2012" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e260.full?rss=1" target="_blank">a</a></em>, <em><a title="Fassett et al 2012b" href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e263.full?rss=1" target="_blank">b</a></em>; open access :-)) acknowledge that their full methodology was not included in the original article (Fassett, Heaman and Simonetti 2011) due to the space constraints of the journal itself, although these shall be discussed in a manuscript in prep.  Fassett <em>et al.</em> also decry the statements of reworking — the samples are from large bones unlikely to have been reworked, and with mineral signatures unlike  definite Cretaceous bones — and isotope ratio alteration — intake of isotopes would have likely been rapid: fossilisation within &lt;100 ka.

So, for Paleocene (just) dinosaurs; the jury’s still out...no?

The second thing that arrive in my feeds, this time from <a title="Dave Hone's Archosaur Musings" href="http://archosaurmusings.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Dave Hone’s Archosaur Musings</a>, was cell biologist Prof Brian Ford’s article on <a title="Aquatic dinosaurs" href="http://www.labnews.co.uk/features/prehistoric-revolution-2/" target="_blank">why dinosaurs were aquatic</a> — news that made it onto Radio 4’s <a title="Today aquatic dinosaurs" href="http://news.bbc.co.uk/today/hi/today/newsid_9710000/9710630.stm" target="_blank"><em>Today </em>programme</a>.  Here, Ford brings back the long dispelled notion that dinosaurs were too massive to walk on land, and so must have required water to support their bulky bodies.  This is reminiscent of the story of the sauropods living in lakes (as seen in e.g. <em>Fantasia</em>) that almost all palaeontology textbooks use as an example of how scientists got it wrong.

On looking at this article, there are many problems, however I feel it best to say that you should read the comments at the end for more discussion from more knowledgable people than me. See also <a title="SV-POW aquatic sauropods" href="http://svpow.com/2012/04/03/did-sauropds-support-their-weight-by-living-in-vast-shallow-lakes/#comments" target="_blank">here</a>.

Well, following that foray in dinosaur tribulations; normal service shall be resumed eventually.

<strong>References</strong>

<a title="Fassett 2009" href="http://palaeo-electronica.org/2009_1/149/index.html" target="_blank">FASSETT, J. E. 2009. New geochronologic and stratigraphic evidence confirms the Paleocene age of the dinosaur-bearing Ojo Alamo Sandstone and Aminas Formation in the San Juan Basin, New Mexico and Colorado. <em>Palaeontologia Electronica</em>, <strong>12</strong>, 146 p.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/39/2/159.abstract?ijkey=ac2e06ec2185c0209e6c893b838a0499a0352a1b&amp;keytype2=tf_ipsecsha" target="_blank">—— HEAMAN, L. M. and SIMONETTI, A. 2011. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>39</strong>, 159–162.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e260.full?rss=1" target="_blank">—— —— —— 2012<em>a</em>. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico: reply. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>40</strong>, e260–e261.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e263.full?rss=1" target="_blank">—— —— —— 2012<em>b</em>. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico: reply. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>40</strong>, e263–e264.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e262.full?rss=1" target="_blank">KOENIG, A. E., LUCAS, S. G., NEYMARK, L. A., HECKERT, A. B., SULLIVAN, R. M., JASINSKI, S. E. and FOWLER, D. W. 2012. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico: comment. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>40</strong>, e262.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e258.full?rss=1" target="_blank">LUDWIG, K. R. 2012. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico: comment. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>40</strong>, e258.</a>

<a href="http://geology.gsapubs.org/content/40/4/e259.full?rss=1" target="_blank">RENNE, P. and GOODWIN, M. B. 2012. Direct U-Pb dating of Cretaceous and Paleocene dinosaur bones, San Juan Basin, New Mexico: comment. <em>Geology</em>, <strong>40</strong>, e259.</a>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>175</wp:post_id>
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  <wp:comment>
    <wp:comment_id>62</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>lmtraynor@sympatico.ca</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url/>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>198.103.167.20</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-04-26 14:58:40</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-04-26 14:58:40</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi,

I recently stumbled on this blog and just wanted to give a word of encouragement to you.  Ichthyosaurs and other marine reptiles (along with pterosaurs) get short shrift in the media next to dinosaurs so it is good to see someone blogging on them, even if sporadically.  It can't help but raise their profile.


Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>karl_m_s@yahoo.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Thanks for the confirmation.  Strange that they haven't followed through on this.  Makes me suspect that they might have discovered a terminal flaw in their methodology that invalidated their conclusion.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>karl_m_s@yahoo.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA["Fassett, Heaman and Simonetti’s replies (2012a, b; open access :-)) acknowledge that their full methodology was not included in the original article (Fassett, Heaman and Simonetti 2011) due to the space constraints of the journal itself, although these shall be discussed in a manuscript in prep.  Fassett et al."

Question:  Has this manuscript ever been produced?  I can't find any evidence of it anywhere.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>454</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>82.43.92.29</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2015-09-07 21:21:42</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi Paul,

To the best of my knowledge, there has been no more come from this in press. I'll admit that I haven't been keeping too close an eye on it, but having done a Google scholar search, I can't find anything more.]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <title>Of Leicester, the apple in its own eye</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/01/of-leicester-the-apple-in-its-own-eye/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 01 Sep 2012 17:51:24 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=182</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<del>This past week</del> A few weeks ago, at the beginning of August, I went to Leicester; ‘why’ you might ask? That’s a very good question, and one that I might not be able to answer if I didn’t already have a reason for being there. Y’see, the wonderful thing about palaeontology is the abundance of fossils that one can, and indeed must, study, look at, fondle and generally enjoy. (Occasional trips to bathroom may be needed if the experience proves too stimulating.)

The thing about Leicester is that is has a museum (actually it has several, but let’s ignore the rest for now), rather nicely titled the New Walk Museum; however, this is rather unimaginative as it is located on New Walk. Hidden within the bowels of the New Walk Museum, where few people dare to tread (not entirely without reason) are the concealed treasures that every such place possesses.

So why did I go to Leicester particularly? The museum houses a large collection of material from the Oxford Clay Formation of the Peterborough area. Much of this was collected in the late Nineteenth and early Twentieth Century and later donated by a Mr R. Swales. Of course, collecting from the Oxford Clay at this time was highly fashionable: Alfred Leeds had recently sold a sizeable collection to the British Museum of Natural History (now the Natural History Museum) in London and was on his way to making another one. The Oxford Clay is famous for the amount of vertebrate material found in the basal ‘Gryphaea and Reptile Beds’, including one ichthyosaur in particular: <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>. The collections at Leicester are significant; I counted around 100 individual catalogue numbers, with many of those having several pieces or elements included, a lot of which I photographed.

So, what did I learn? For me, quite a bit, having not had the chance to take a lengthy, up-close look at ichthyosaur material before (only isolated days at the Natural History Museum). As for our knowledge of <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>, I happily looked at and confirmed the most recent descriptions; what more can you ask? This work, I will continue up to the end of this year.

So, as a way to not have a post consisting entirely of text, I took some photographs of the underbelly of the New Walk Museum, just so those who may not visit such places can have a look. I’d like to thank Mark Evans for hosting me in the museum and helping with finding the specimens and taking the photographs.

While this is a small and unassuming post, I am sorting through the photographs that I took in Leicester and will post a few of the finer ones, once they have been processed.

[caption id="attachment_215" align="alignleft" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/leicester-nwm-interior.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-215" title="Leicester NWM interior" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/leicester-nwm-interior.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="341" /></a> The hidden bowels of the New Walk Museum, Leicester, showing the collections on shelves, trolleys and in drawers in cupboards in stacks on rollers.[/caption]
<p style="padding-left:30px;"><span style="color:#000000;">Edit (02/09/2012): Line 1, changed timing as draught was begun long before posting; italicised generic names.</span></p>]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>80</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>lmtraynor@sympatico.ca</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url/>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>198.103.167.20</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-09-07 18:51:30</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-09-07 17:51:30</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Obviously, one goes into paleontology for the posh digs.

You're spot on about the joy of fondling a fossil.  I collect trilobites and there's something indescribably wonderful about actually touching material laid down by a living thing that has now been dead for so many millions of years.  Not something a picture or model can convey.  Some fossils that are impressions are exquisitely detailed and delightful are yet missing that tactile dimension of contact with what was the living tissue of a long gone organism.

Of course, trilobite can't convey the awe of the size of some of the vertebrates, but there's also something about looking into the calcite lenses of a trilobite and knowing that it had looked through them too.]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>A shadow grows in Academia</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/05/02/a-shadow-grows-in-academia/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 02 May 2012 10:56:10 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=183</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Hi there, and how are you?  Do you remember me?  I occasionally blog here.

Recently the usually serene (ha!) world of academia has been set alight by the tumultuous uproar of what has become known as the ‘<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2012/apr/09/frustrated-blogpost-boycott-scientific-journals">Academic Spring</a>’.  Many, including myself, have long been thwarted in attempts to get access to research online by paywalls and the dreaded ‘access to this article is restricted’ sign.  This had been left as ‘part of the system’, not the best part, but the just way it worked.  However, change is afoot, and growing in popularity, support and power.  For today, here’s some history.

Since a very long time ago, the only way to tell people about what you had found out in your philosophical deliberations was to write about it.  <a class="zem_slink" title="Aristotle" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aristotle" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Aristotle</a> and <a class="zem_slink" title="Pliny the Elder" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pliny_the_Elder" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Pliny</a> wrote reams of material about anything that passed their mind.  In the mid-Seventeenth Century, the first <a class="zem_slink" title="Scientific journal" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientific_journal" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">scientific journals</a> appeared, such as the <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philosophical_Transactions_of_the_Royal_Society" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society</a></em>, which are a great way to spread your research in small steps, without having to write about everything all in one.  This has stuck with us until the present day, because it works: you do some research, writes it up and send it to a journal.  The editor sends it a few other scientists to check the science has been done properly — this is <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peer_review">peer review</a>, the cornerstone of modern science dissemination — and asks the author for changes and clarifications etc.  Once everyone’s accepted this, the article is published and the world can see what you’ve done.

Except, as it is, not everyone can see your work.  The majority of journals are published by only a few large publishing groups, e.g. Elsevier and Springer.  To be able to find a journal and download an article you must have access — either through a library, personal subscription or by paying there and then — which can cost anywhere from £10 (e.g. <em>Palaeontology</em> individual student subscription) through to £20 000 (e.g. <em>Nature</em> institutional subscription) and beyond.  You might expect this, considering all the services mentioned above that the journal provides — editing, review, formatting, dissemination… but, for many purely academic journals, these are done free of charge by the editors, willing scientists (peer review) and by the author (much of the formatting).

So what do the publishers offer?  Well, they do make print copies and send them to subscribers — but most people now use computers and the internet for research, downloading in .pdf format.  Each journal will have a website managed by their respective publishers, which costs — but I can set up a website, as I have done with this blog, for free.  I could upload articles I’ve written (there’s a free 1 GB upload limit on WordPress), so that they are available to the world — peer review could be requested by me sending manuscripts to experts in the field; whether they’ll be interested in doing this will depend upon time and commitments.  On journal websites, you know your work will be found — but with the joy of <a class="zem_slink" title="Google" href="http://www.zdnet.com/topics/google+inc.?tag=header;header-sec" rel="zdnet" target="_blank">Google</a>, and its constant indexing of websites, so is this blog: it was hit №32, when I searched for ‘ichthyosaurs’ and top hit if I search for a specific post title (e.g. ‘who’s useless at writing a blog?’; which is how I often search for papers).  Searching Google for ‘new ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaurs’ brings up <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0029234">this paper</a> (the one I wanted) at the top.

In summary, it is not difficult for me to do much the same as an established journal here, sitting at my computer in the University of Bristol.  It may not have the same prestige as publishing in <em>Nature </em>or<em> Science</em>.  The main problem I can see is that the reference to an article posted on a blog may not be as desirable as one in a journal, even though it may have gone through the same level of criticism.  It could also take up a bit of my time, leaving less for sleeping.

Fortunately, there is an alternative to pay for access publishing: <a class="zem_slink" title="Open access" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Open_access" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">OPEN ACCESS</a>, which will be the subject of another post soon.]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author_email>stephaniejacob@gawab.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi there, just wanted to tell you, I enjoyed 
this post. It was helpful. Keep on posting!]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Reaching out to teach</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/05/28/reaching-out-to-teach/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 28 May 2012 14:55:00 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=185</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[This past month I’ve been thinking a bit about public outreach in science.  Several things have spurred this on:
<ul>
	<li>Two papers in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/home.action"><em>PLoS ONE</em></a>; one about scientists perceptions of outreach and the other on the citation value of science <a class="zem_slink" title="Blog" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blog" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">blogs</a>.</li>
	<li>The <a href="http://www.bristolzoo.org.uk/dinozoo">DinoZoo</a> exhibition coming to <a class="zem_slink" title="Bristol Zoo" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bristol_Zoo" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Bristol Zoo Gardens</a>, featuring several large animatronic models of dinosaurs.</li>
	<li>Recently visiting a school with the <a href="http://www.thebristoldinosaurproject.org.uk/">Bristol Dinosaur Project</a> to teach about local science and work that the University does.</li>
</ul>
So what is this outreach thing and what do people think of it?
<h1><strong>Outreach in science</strong></h1>
We scientists spend a lot of our time researching, and from this we find out a lot of stuff.  Some of this can be quite technical or need lateral (or occasionally nonsensical) thinking that most scientists wouldn’t easily comprehend, let alone non-scientists.  The thing is, much of this research is done using money from research councils, which themselves get money from public taxes.  Thus, something is owed to the public that funded the research.

This can come in many forms:
<ul>
	<li>The research papers that officially announces the results and implications of the research.  This is where much of the interpretation of the data and its potential uses ends up.  Recently this has been criticised as the paper often ends up behind a paywall that many people can’t get through without dishing out more money.</li>
	<li>Internet/intranet databases hold much of the raw data, especially if there’s too much to go into a published article and requires a certain filetype.  Again, access will be restricted.  the purpose of this is to prevent stealing or meddling with sensitive data, but also to keep whoever holds it at the forefront of its use.  This and the first point will need a decent amount of specialist knowledge to use.</li>
	<li>Public outreach programs are hosted by various institutions.  Their purpose is to go into schools, shopping centres, parks etc and show the work done by that institution in a way that is both comprehendible and memorable.  The outreach format varies: talks, workshops, field trips and so on.  At the University of Bristol, there are several projects, in particular I am involved with the Bristol Dinosaur Project.</li>
</ul>
<h1><strong>What do scientists think?</strong></h1>
On 30 April 2012, <em>PLoS ONE</em> published an article ‘How academic biologists and physicists view <a class="zem_slink" title="Science outreach" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Science_outreach" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">science outreach</a>’ (Ecklund, James and Lincoln 2012).  The premise is simple: ask several academics what they think of outreach and then analyse the results.  Out of this come many statistics, such as the ratio of women to men who are involved in outreach (72% women to 43% men) and the number of graduate students (54%) compared to postdoctoral fellows (33%).

More interesting is the perceived problems associated with outreach:
<blockquote>Seventy-four percent of respondents list one or more significant impediments to their ability to do science outreach, yet less than half have concrete ideas for how science outreach could be improved <em>(Ecklund, James and Lincoln 2012, pg. 3).</em></blockquote>
Those who want to spend their life working specifically in science outreach have often faced disapproval whilst in academic training.  The article splits the problems into three categories:
<ul>
	<li>Scientists: poor interpersonal and communication skills; 5% say some do not see it as part of their role as a scientist; 15% think non-scientists should organise scientists’ outreach efforts.</li>
	<li>The Academy: universities value research above all else; lack of outreach infrastructure; lack of recognition for outreach activities.</li>
	<li>The Public: potentially disinterested, mistrustful or ignorant; perception of scientists as snobby; lack of interest in science.</li>
</ul>
Some of these problems can be solved simply, although not necessarily easily: give scientists the ability to broadcast their research in a way that is both comprehendible and exciting to the non-scientific community.  This must work both ways: the public need have enough of the required knowledge and interest instilled in them.  For obvious reasons, this does not mean that the entirety of the public must know everything about the whole of science, in the same way that researchers focus on one area only.
<h1><strong>Spreading the understanding</strong></h1>
An easy, and one of the most popular way to spread the knowledge one accrues, whether through research, travel or life generally, is the personal, or group blog.  These have become vastly popular: WordPress.com reports 460 015 bloggers today, as I write this.  Shema, Bar-Ilan and Thelwall (2012) looked at the perception of research blogs and the bloggers’ demographics, similar to the study above on outreach.  They found that most of the research blogs they sampled (limited to less than two authors with over 20 posts within a year) were written by men (67%), most (72%) were linked to twitter and about one-third were written by PhD students — all of which are where I fall.

So, how good are these blogs?  As a way of spreading information, they are pretty darn good; written word and all that.  Blogs are available when and wherever you have an internet connection; they are regularly indexed by various search engines; there is some store somewhere, digital and/or physical, where are this data is being stored for posterity.  Written explanations also allow people to take a break and resume later, which can’t happen in a presentation or workshop.  You can offer in-text links, pictures, videos, music and all other manner of wonderful stuff.  At the end of a blog, you’ll frequently see a comments section, which is great for discussions on the posted topic (assuming you aren’t continuously trolled).  Please do use the comment field at the bottom of articles to spread your thoughts and have discussion.

I find myself reading blogs often; I have a few set up in my RSS reader so I automatically get the newest posts as they come up.  Speaking from my own experience, it’s always good when you see the counter on the right going up and up from views (most of these may be from me checking how many people have looked).  These blogs are even catalogued for the papers that they mention, thus counting for various metrics that measure influence.
<h1><strong>The smelly side of publicity</strong></h1>
They do say that all publicity is good publicity, although I don’t know who ‘they’ are exactly.  This is not true.  In the case of a particular paper it put a bit of a stink on things; I’m talking particularly about ‘Could methane produced by sauropod dinosaurs have helped drive Mesozoic climate warmth?’ (Wilkinson, Nisbet and Ruxton 2012).  In a lab group, we pulled it apart and found a lot to question about the methods, much has been summed up by David Button at <a href="http://evopalaeo.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/hypothetical-sauropod-flatulence-little.html"><em>EvoPalaeo</em></a> and John Tennant over at <a href="http://fossilsandshit.wordpress.com/2012/05/08/dinosaur-farts-and-global-warming-a-crude-analysis/"><em>Green Tea and Velociraptors</em></a>.  However, rather than just being a proof of concept in showing the calculation could be done (and could be done more respectably in more than two pages), it caused a bit of a flurry in the media.  Unfortunately from my point of view, these newspapers decided to go with the title ‘Dinosaur farts led to global warming’, or something along those lines.

Now, we all enjoy a good fart now and then, but to have many international news networks spring alive to take this story for a ride doesn’t really paint dinosaurologists in the best of lights.  I do not blame the authors of the article for this; dinosaur farts have been discussed before and how would they know the article would receive the attention that it did.  The problem mainly stems from the media who reported this took the plausible, if not fully justified, conclusion of the paper — the sauropods added much methane to the atmosphere during the ‘Mesozoic’ (although extrapolated from the Kimmeridgian–Tithonian Morrison Formation) — and went through ‘sauropod farts caused global warming’ to ‘dinosaurs farted their way to extinction’.  This is a part of the ignorance that scientists see when dealing with the public.  Fortunately, the case of the dinosaur farts is a rare occurrence in the world of outreach: people are intelligent and skeptical enough to take such things with a pinch of salt.  Yet, it is not good if the infrequent appearances of dinosaurs in the news comes as toilet humour.

For those of you who come here looking for ichthyosaurs, don’t worry there’s something special coming along soon!
<h1><strong>References</strong></h1>
<a title="PLoS ONE e36240" href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0036240" target="_blank">ECKLUND, E. H., JAMES, S. A. and LINCOLN, A. E. 2012. How academic biologists and physicists view science outreach. <em>PLoS ONE</em>, <strong>7</strong>, e36240:5p.</a>

<a title="PLoS ONE e35869" href="http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0035869.t001" target="_blank">SHEMA, H., BAR-ILAN, J. and THELWALL, M. 2012. Research blogs and the discussion of scholarly information. <em>PLoS ONE</em>, <strong>7</strong>, e35869:8p.</a>

<a title="Wilkinson farting dinosaurs" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2012.03.042" target="_blank">WILKINSON, D. M., NISBET, E. G. and RUXTON, G. D. 2012. Could methane produced by sauropod dinosaurs have helped drive Mesozoic climate warmth? <em>Current Biology</em>, <strong>22</strong>, R292–R293.</a>]]></content:encoded>
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<item>
  <title>Grendel strikes again!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/13/grendel-strikes-again/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 13 Jul 2012 09:52:40 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=192</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Remember this little critter?

[caption id="attachment_193" align="alignleft" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-193" title="Brachypterygius mordax BRSMG Ce 16696 exhibit" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-mordax-brsmg-ce-16696-exhibit.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="224" /></a> Brachypterygius sp., a largely complete specimen (Ce 16696) in the Bristol Museum [composite image taken through glass].[/caption]This is the ichthyosaur formerly known as <em>Grendelius mordax </em>McGowan, 1976.  This name comes from the monster Grendel from the Old English epic <em>Beowulf</em>; roughly, it means ‘Grendel-like bite’.  Before 1997, all the material known of <em>Grendelius mordax</em> was a crushed, but pretty nicely complete skull, and some bits of vertebrae and shoulder girdle; almost all of which is in the <a class="zem_slink" title="Sedgwick Museum of Earth Sciences" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sedgwick_Museum_of_Earth_Sciences" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Sedgwick Museum</a>, Cambridge (see below).

[caption id="attachment_194" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-194" title="SMCJ68516(McGowanMotani2003)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/smcj68516mcgowanmotani2003.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="191" /></a> Brachypterygius mordax, a large, complete but crushed skull in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge (SMC J68516) (from McGowan and Motani 2003).[/caption]

Way back in 1904 (<em>a</em>,<em>b</em>), Boulenger gave the name <em>Ichthyosaurus extremus</em> to a paddle from the Kimmeridge Clay (Upper Jurassic) of Weymouth, Dorset, UK.  The shape of the bones, made it obvious that this was a type of ichthyosaur.  However, its humerus was unusual in joining to three paddle bones (three distal facets, similar to <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>): the ulna, radius and intermedium.

[caption id="attachment_195" align="alignright" width="161"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-extremus-forepaddle2.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-195" title="Brachypterygius extremus forepaddle2" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-extremus-forepaddle2.jpg?w=161" alt="" width="161" height="300" /></a> Brachypterygius extremus forepaddle, specimen in the Natural History Museum (specimen R3177).[/caption]

What does <em>Ichthyosaurus extremus</em> have to do with <em>Grendelius mordax,</em> I hear you cry?

These ichthyosaur names show a good example of how scientific names for animals change, based on new discoveries.  This is managed by the <a class="zem_slink" title="International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Commission_on_Zoological_Nomenclature" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature</a> (ICZN; which can be translated as ‘the Lords of Animal Names’, although I’d imagine this is the first time it’s happened).  This body has published guidelines on how to name, write and change names of animals.  It is the ICZN, following the rules first contrived by Linnaeus, who requires animal names to contain two parts (binomial nomenclature): a generic name, e.g. <em>Ichthyosaurus</em>, and a specific name, e.g. <em>Ichthyosaurus extremus</em>.  (The genus is the first part, but the species always contains both.)  Both the species and genus has a unique defining set of characters, but a genus can have many species, each subtly different — e.g. <em>Ichthyosaurus</em> has <em>Ichthyosaurus</em> <em>communis</em>, <em>Ichthyosaurus</em> <em>breviceps</em>, <em>Ichthyosaurus conybeari</em> and more.

Back to <em>Ichthyosaurus extremus</em>.  In 1922, Friedrich von Huene wrote a book about ichthyosaurs.  Here he noted that many ichthyosaurs were different enough from each other to split them into separate <em>genera</em> (sing. <em>genus</em>).  Before, most ichthyosaurs had been put into the genus <em>Ichthyosaurus</em>.  Huene (1922) changed the names of <em>Ichthyosaurus enthekiodon</em> to <em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon </em>(Huene 1922, p. 98), based upon it’s tiny paddles, and <em>Ichthyosaurus extremus</em> became <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Brachypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachypterygius" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Brachypterygius</a> extremus </em>(Huene 1922, p. 97), for the short and wide paddle.

When the fossil of <em>Grendelius mordax</em> above was described and named, only isolated paddles had been found that were certainly <em>Brachypterygius</em>.  Only a head was known for <em>Grendelius mordax</em>, and so the two were thought to be different, hence the different names.

Then, in 1997, a small note came out in <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em> (McGowan 1997).  This showed a new specimen in the Bristol Museum (Ce 16696); the one in the picture at the top.  As an ichthyosaur specimen, this is a good example: preserved on its side, substantially complete with little disruption of the bones.  The skull was prepared, and upon studying this, Christopher McGowan could confirm it as <em>Grendelius mordax</em> — but now, the skull came complete with a body, and most importantly: a paddle! (I’m sure you can guess where I’m going with this.)

Of course, this paddle was characteristic of <em>Brachypterygius extremus</em>.  So this ichthyosaur, with the head of <em>Grendelius</em> and the paddle of <em>Brachypterygius</em>, showed that what was thought to be two different animals were the same.  The problem then was: <em>what do you call it?</em>

[caption id="attachment_208" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-brsmg-ce-16696-skull-piece-mixed-100dpi.png"><img class="size-full wp-image-208" title="Brachypterygius BRSMG Ce 16696 skull piece mixed 100dpi" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brachypterygius-brsmg-ce-16696-skull-piece-mixed-100dpi.png" alt="" width="584" height="449" /></a> Brachypterygius sp., skull piece and interpretation, from the Bristol Museum (undescribed &amp; unfigured specimen Ce 16696). This is the treat I spoke of in a previous post. [Thanks to Paul for commenting on the labelling — what I had labelled as the angulars are more likely splenials.][/caption]Fortunately, the ICZN have guidelines for this too!  Unfortunately (in this case), the rule is that the earliest valid name has priority — there can be exceptions, as is likely in the case of <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em>.  <em>Brachypterygius </em>is the older name — both originally and its changing — so <em>Grendelius</em> became <em>Brachypterygius</em>, depriving us of such a good name (to save confusion, disused names cannot be applied to other animals).

What about the species?  Does it become <em>Brachypterygius extremus</em>, or <em>Brachypterygius mordax</em>.  McGowan (1997, p. 430) left this unsettled pending further preparation, study and comparison to the type specimens of <em>Brachypterygius extremus</em> and <em>Brachypterygius “Grendelius” mordax</em>.  In this post, I've left it as <em>Brachypterygius </em>sp., i.e. a species of <em>Brachypterygius</em>.  One of my tasks, as part of my PhD is to take this on: watch this space…

<strong>Bibliography</strong>

BOULENGER, G. A. 1904a. On a new species of ichthyosaur from Bath. <em>Proceedings of the <a class="zem_slink" title="Zoological Society of London" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zoological_Society_of_London" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">Zoological Society of London</a></em>, <strong>1904</strong>, 424–426.

—— 1904b. Abstracts to the Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, March 15th, 1904. <em>Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London</em>, <strong>1904</strong>, 18.

HUENE, F. R. V. 1922. <em>Die Ichthyosaurier des Lias und ihre Zusammenhänge</em>.  Verlag von Gebrüder Borntraeger, Berlin, 114 + 122 pl pp.

MCGOWAN, C. 1976. The description and phenetic relationships of a new ichthyosaur genus from the Upper Jurassic of England. <em>Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</em>, <strong>13</strong>, 668–683.

—— 1997. The taxonomic status of Grendelius mordax: a preliminary report. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>17</strong>, 428–430.

—— and MOTANI, R. 2003. <em>Ichthyopterygia</em>. <em>In</em> Handbook of Paleoherpetology. Verlag Dr. Friedrich Pfeil, Munich, 175 pp.
<pre style="text-align:right;">[Edit log:</pre>
<pre style="text-align:right;">20120720—line 2 changed 1997 to 1976; general formatting improvements.]</pre>]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben,

Thank you for your reply. Wasn't the skull re-cleaned recently or have I got that wrong? Also is the rest of the skeleton prepable?

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Paul,

I don't know about any work that has gone on to the specimen recently, although if they've moved the specimen around it may well have been cleaned. I can ask Roger Vaughan (Geology Curator at the Bristol Museum) about its history. 

Prep-wise, the skull and right forepaddle (ventral view) have been prepped. I'm currently doing some work to the left forepaddle, prepping that (again in ventral view as its flipped over and back) and will also look at the shoulder girdle and occipital region (going in from the back). There's some possible soft-tissue preservation around the shoulders.

As for prepability, the matrix comes off nicely right up to the bone using small a air pen. With a chisel attachment it just flows off. We're looking to use air abrasive more to work through it more quickly and finely. Remmert Schouten and Pedro Viegas have been mentoring me in this (as well as keeping an eye on me!), and we've also had some suggestions from Steve Etches. Simon Powell has take a photo of the main body part of the specimen, which I will upload at some point (maybe I can even get back into a semi-regular/frequent pattern of posting too!)

Ben]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul de la Salle]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben,

Thanks for posting such a good photo of the skull. It really is a magnificent specimen and the high resolution does show so much more. 

It will be interesting to see what you find re. the shape of the coracoid and clavicle (if they prep out OK). Steve Etches has a lot of interesting stuff including what appears to be a juvenile Brachypterygius. Have you seen this? He also has clavicles and coracoids of differing shapes.

Keep up the good work on the posts if you have the time.

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben

Excellently enhanced surface on the specimen. Who cleaned it?

Could the bones labelled 'angular' be the ventral forward extension of the spenials, the angulars ending more posteriorly (see Kirton 1983 and pers. obs. on Ophthalmosaurus)? 

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>69</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Paul,

Thanks for the comment. I don't know who did the skull preparation off-hand, I'll check that at some point. I know that Chris McGowan did prepare the paddle before he synonymised <em>Brachypterygius</em> and <em>Grendelius</em>.

And I think that you are right with the naming of the splenial, my bad! I've changed the image now. Thanks for painting that out.

Ben]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>76</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_date>2012-08-06 11:27:31</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Mike,

Thank you for your comment; it's always to know people enjoy this. I hope not to make you wait to long for the next instalment.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>lmtraynor@sympatico.ca</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[" One of my tasks, as part of my PhD is to take this on: watch this space…"

As a layman, one of the most exciting aspects of reading scientists' blogs is the chance to sort of see a scientist at work (albeit in a form of stop-motions animation), so this is something I'll very much look forward to.  Thanks for taking the time for this.]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <title>Deep Diving Dinosaurs? Time to Write a Letter.</title>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Springer's reply can be seen here: http://fossilsandshit.wordpress.com/2012/08/14/springer-respond/]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[The journal in which this paper appears is known for publishing trash.  Their review process is shoddy at best, and probably nonexistent.   I would encourage any respectable scientist to avoid publishing in it.]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>200 years of ichthyosaurology</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2014/06/23/200-years-of-ichthyosaurology/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 23 Jun 2014 10:58:45 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=217</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[It's been a while … I'm good at this regular blogging idea!

Rest assured that I am still at my PhD, and that the world of ichthyosaurs is still full of fun and exciting things to see and do. It's just that I've been heavily invested in a mountain of work that hasn't left me too much time for anything else … aside from an occasional meal and some sleep.

But on the plus side:

Today is the 200th anniversary of the first description of a (recognisable) ichthyosaur by Sir Everard Home, published in the <em>Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society</em>. Surely that deserves a mention and some form of celebration? (I'm having t-shirts made.) The specimen was first discovered by Joseph and Mary Anning in 1811, then was sold and eventually made its way to London, where Home got his hands on it. I mention that it isn't the first ichthyosaur as some specimens in the Oxford Natural history Museum that are almost certainly ichthyosaurian were figured by Lhwyd in 1699 (see pls 17–19).

I leave you with an inspirational (yeah, right!) drawing from Home's description of what is now known as <em>Temnodontosaurus platyodon</em>. There is more to come soon.

[caption id="attachment_434" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ichthyosaur1814.png"><img class="size-large wp-image-434" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/ichthyosaur1814.png?w=584" alt="The skull illustrated in Home (1814) I can't read the caption to tell who the illustrator is. Text added by me." width="584" height="277" /></a> The skull illustrated in Home (1814) I can't read the caption to tell who the illustrator is. Text added by me.[/caption]
<h1>References</h1>
<a title="Home 1814: ichthyosaur" href="http://rstl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/104/571.full.pdf+html" target="_blank"><strong>Home, E</strong>. (1814). Some account of the fossil remains of an animal more nearly allied to fishes than any of the other classes of animals. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, London, <strong>104</strong>, 571–577.</a>

<a title="Lhwyd 1699" href="http://books.google.co.uk/books/about/Eduardi_Luidii_Lithophylacii_Britannici.html?id=o38UAAAAYAAJ&amp;redir_esc=y" target="_blank"><strong>Lhwyd, E</strong>. (1699). Lithophylacii Britannici Ichnographia. Clarendon Press, Oxford.</a>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Whewell&#8217;s Gazette: Vol. 2 | Whewell&#039;s Ghost]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_date>2014-06-30 19:43:52</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2014-06-30 18:43:52</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[&#8230;] Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life … [&#8230;]]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_type>pingback</wp:comment_type>
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    <wp:comment_id>330</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>lmtraynor@sympatico.ca</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_author_IP>70.26.47.93</wp:comment_author_IP>
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    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2014-06-26 04:51:44</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hey, it's been less than a year, so not too bad.  I'm glad you're having fun at the fish lizards.  I hugely appreciate the folk who go into science and dig up these pictures of that weird bygone world.

And I'll keep checking in even if the next one is a bit more than year.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>lmtraynor@sympatico.ca</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[I hope it was obvious my tongue was in my cheek on the frequency.]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaur taxonomy</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:51:05 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?page_id=222</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[[caption id="" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://commons.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Ichthyosaurus_h_harder.jpg" target="_blank"><img class="zemanta-img-inserted zemanta-img-configured" title="Ichthyosaurus." alt="Ichthyosaurus." src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a7/Ichthyosaurus_h_harder.jpg/300px-Ichthyosaurus_h_harder.jpg" width="300" height="163" /></a> Ichthyosaurus. (Image credit: Heinrich Harder/Wikimedia Commons)[/caption]

This page will show a list of ichthyosaur genera and species, with authorities and relevant references. This list has been created from published sources by the following method:
<ol>
	<li>The recent appraisal by Maisch (2010) was used as a basis.</li>
	<li>Valid species named from 2010 onwards (after submission and final editing of Maisch 2010) added.</li>
	<li>Comparisons of the arguments were made between Maisch's (2000) and McGowan and Motani's (2003) taxonomy.</li>
	<li>Consistency was checked in key references, particularly where taxa were synonymised.</li>
</ol>
These steps should ensure that all previously named taxa listed here are valid and officially recognised. Newly named taxa will be added as published. Some of the taxa, particularly recent additions, are catalogued in the official database, <a title="Zoobank homepage" href="http://zoobank.org" target="_blank">Zoobank</a>.

For each taxon, the generic name is given in bold, with its authority, followed by a list of species names with authorities and general horizon and locality data. As taxa are added or revised, this page will be kept up to date. It is worth noting that opinions may vary on the status of taxa, but as this is based upon the most recent studies, it should be considered as the current state. A pdf version, with references, is available here: <a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6.pdf">Ichthyosaurspecies_basic_1_1_6</a>. If you have any comments, queries or things you think I should change, please do comment, or <a title="Contact" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/about/contact/">email me</a>.
<pre>Updates:
2012-09-18 v1.0.1: added Temnodontosaurus azerguensis.
2012-10-01 v1.1: amended Stenopterygius (=Chacaicosaurus) cayi, several references (e.g. Yin et al. 2000), added CC-BY-SA logo and license.
2012-10-01 v1.1.1: added missing Hauffiopteryx.
2012-10-15 v1.1.2: added Cryopterygius kristiansenae and Palvennia hoybergeti.
2013-01-09 v1.1.3: added Thalattoarchon saurophagis.
2013-04-11 v1.1.4: added Leninia stellans.
2013-05-19 v1.1.5: added Malawania anachronus, corrected authority for Eurhinosaurus longirostris and spelling of Guizhouichthyosaurus.
2013-07-24 v1.1.6: added Gulosaurus helmi and Chaohusaurus zhangjiawanensis.</pre>
<h1>List of valid ichthyosaur genera and species in alphabetical order</h1>
<strong><em>Acamptonectes </em>Fischer <em>et al.</em>, 2012:</strong><em> Acamptonectes densus </em>Fischer <em>et al.</em>, 2012, <a class="zem_slink" title="Early Cretaceous" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Cretaceous" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Lower Cretaceous</a>, England, Germany.

<strong><em>Aegirosaurus </em>Bardet and Fernández, 2000: </strong><em><a class="zem_slink" title="Aegirosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegirosaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Aegirosaurus leptospondylus</a></em> (Wagner 1853), <a class="zem_slink" title="Late Jurassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_Jurassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Upper Jurassic</a>–Lower Cretaceous?, Germany, Austria.

<strong><em>Arthropterygius </em>Maxwell, 2010: </strong><em>Arthropterygius chrisorum</em> (Russell, 1993), Upper Jurassic, <a class="zem_slink" title="Canada" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=45.4,-75.6666666667&amp;spn=10.0,10.0&amp;q=45.4,-75.6666666667 (Canada)&amp;t=h" target="_blank" rel="geolocation">Canada</a>, Argentina?.

<strong><em>Athabascasaurus </em>Druckenmiller and Maxwell, 2010:</strong><em> Athabascasaurus bitumineus </em>Druckenmiller and Maxwell, 2010, Lower Cretaceous, Canada.

<strong><em>Barracudasauroides </em>Maisch, 2010:</strong> <em>Barracudasauroides panxianensis</em> (Jiang <em>et al.</em>, 2006), <a class="zem_slink" title="Middle Triassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Triassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Middle Triassic</a>, China.

<strong><em>Besanosaurus </em>Dal Sasso and Pinna, 1996:</strong> <em>Besanosaurus leptorhynchus</em> Dal Sasso and Pinna, 1996, Middle Triassic, Italy, Switzerland.

<strong><em><a class="zem_slink" title="Brachypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachypterygius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Brachypterygius</a> </em>Huene, 1922: </strong><em>Brachypterygius extremus</em> (Boulenger, 1904), Upper Jurassic, Engand; <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Brachypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachypterygius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Brachypterygius mordax</a></em> (McGowan, 1976), Upper Jurassic, England; <em>Brachypterygius pseudoscythius</em> (Efimov, 1998), Upper Jurassic, Russia; <em>Brachypterygius alekseevi</em> (Arkhangelsky, 2001), Upper Jurassic, Russia; <em>Brachypterygius cantabridgiensis</em> (Lydekker, 1888<em>a</em>), Lower Cretaceous, England.

<strong><em>Californosaurus</em> Kuhn, 1934:</strong> <em>Californosaurus perrini</em> (Merriam, 1902), <a class="zem_slink" title="Late Triassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Late_Triassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Upper Triassic</a> USA.

<strong><em>Callawayia </em></strong><strong>Maisch and Matzke, 2000:</strong> <em>Callawayia neoscapularis </em>(McGowan, 1994), Upper Triassic, Canada.

<strong><em>Caypullisaurus</em> Fernández, 1997: </strong><em>Caypullisaurus bonapartei</em> Fernández, 1997, Upper Jurassic, Argentina.

<strong><em>Chaohusaurus</em></strong> <strong>Young and Dong, 1972:</strong> <em>Chaohusaurus geishanensis </em>Young and Dong, 1972, Lower Triassic, China; <em>Chaohusaurus zhangjiawanensis</em> Chen<em> et al.</em>, 2013, Lower Triassic, China.

<strong><em>Contectopalatus</em></strong> <strong>Maisch and Matzke, 1998<em>b</em>:</strong> <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Contectopalatus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contectopalatus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Contectopalatus atavus</a></em> (Quenstedt, 1852), Middle Triassic, Germany.

<strong><i>Cryopterygius</i> Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i>, 2012:</strong> <i>Cryopterygius kristiansenae</i> Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i>, 2012, Upper Jurassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em><a class="zem_slink" title="Cymbospondylus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymbospondylus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Cymbospondylus</a> </em></strong><strong>Leidy, 1868:</strong> <em>Cymbospondylus piscosus </em>Leidy, 1868, Middle Triassic, USA; <em>Cymbospondylus petrinus </em>Leidy, 1868 (questionable), Middle Triassic, USA; <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Cymbospondylus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymbospondylus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Cymbospondylus buchseri</a></em> Sander, 1989, Middle Triassic, Switzerland; <em>Cymbospondylus nichollsi</em> Fröbisch, Sander and Rieppel, 2006, Middle Triassic, USA.

<strong><em>Eurhinosaurus</em> Abel, 1909:</strong><em> Eurhinosaurus longirostris</em> (Mantell, 1851), <a class="zem_slink" title="Early Jurassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Early_Jurassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Lower Jurassic</a>, Germany, England, France, Luxembourg.

<strong><em>Excalibosaurus</em> McGowan, 1986:</strong> <em>Excalibosaurus costini</em> McGowan, 1986, Lower Jurassic, England.

<strong><em>Grippia</em></strong> <strong>Wiman, 1929:</strong> <em>Grippia longirostris</em> Wiman, 1929, Lower Triassic, Svalbard, Canada.

<strong><em>Guizhouichthyosaurus</em> Yin <em>et al.</em>, 2000:</strong> <em>Guizhouichthyosaurus tangae</em> Yin <em>et al.</em>, 2000, possibly referable to <em>Shastasaurus</em>, Upper Triassic, China; <em>Guizhouichthyosaurus wolongangensis</em> (Chen, Cheng and Sander, 2007), Upper Triassic, China.

<strong><em>Gulosaurus</em> Cuthbertson, Russell and Anderson,</strong> <strong>2013: </strong><em>Gulosaurus helmi</em> Cuthbertson, Russell and Anderson, 2013, Lower Triassic, Canada.<em> </em>

<strong><em>Hauffiopteryx </em>Maisch, 2008:</strong> <em>Hauffiopteryx typicus</em> Maisch, 2008, Lower Jurassic, Germany, England, Luxembourg.

<strong><em>Himalayasaurus</em></strong> <strong>Young and Dong, 1972:</strong> <em>Hamalayasaurus tibetensis</em> Young and Dong, 1972, Upper Triassic, Tibet.

<strong><em>Hudsonelpidia </em>McGowan, 1995:</strong> <em>Hudsonelpidia brevirostris</em> McGowan, 1995, Upper Triassic, Canada.

<strong><em>Ichthyosaurus</em> König, 1818:</strong> <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Ichthyosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichthyosaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Ichthyosaurus communis</a></em> Conybeare, 1822, Lower Jurassic, England, Belgium, Switzerland; <em>Ichthyosaurus intermedius</em> Conybeare, 1822, Lower Jurassic, England; <em>Ichthyosaurus breviceps</em> Owen, 1881, Lower Jurassic, England; <em>Ichthyosaurus conybeari</em> Lydekker, 1888<em>b</em>, Lower Jurassic, England.

<strong><em>“</em><em>Ichthyosaurus” acutirostris</em> Owen, 1840:</strong> this taxon is in need of restudy and revision; specimens assigned to this taxon likely form a paraphyletic assemblage from several other valid taxa (Maisch 2010).

<strong><em>Isfjordosaurus</em></strong><strong>Motani, 1999:</strong> <em>Isfjordosaurus minor</em> (Wiman, 1910), Lower Triassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Leninia </em>Fischer <em>et al</em>.,</strong> 2013: <em>Leninia stellans</em> Fischer<em> et al., </em>2013, Lower Cretaceous, Russia.

<strong><em><a class="zem_slink" title="Leptonectes" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptonectes" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Leptonectes</a></em> McGowan, 1996<em>b</em>:</strong><em>Leptonectes tenuirostris</em> (Conybeare, 1822), Lower Jurassic, England, Germany, Switzerland, Belgium; <em>Leptonectes solei</em> (McGowan, 1993), Lower Jurassic, England; <em>Leptonectes moorei</em> McGowan and Milner, 1999, Lower Jurassic, England.

<strong><em>Macgowania</em> Motani, 1999:</strong> <em>Macgowania janiceps</em> (McGowan, 1996<em>a</em>), Upper Triassic, Canada.

<strong><em>Maiaspondylus </em>Maxwell and Caldwell, 2006:</strong><em> Maiaspondylus lindoei</em> Maxwell and Caldwell, 2006, Lower Cretaceous, Canada.

<em><strong>Malawania</strong></em><strong> Fischer<em> et al.</em>, 2013:</strong> <em>Malawania anachronus</em> Fischer <em>et al.</em>, 2013, Lower Cretaceous, Iraq.

<strong><em>Mikadocephalus</em> Maisch and Matzke, 1997:</strong> <em>Mikadocephalus gracilirostris</em> Maisch and Matzke, 1997, Middle Triassic, Switzerland, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Mixosaurus</em> Baur, 1887:</strong> <em>Mixosaurus cornalianus</em> (Bassani, 1886),Middle Triassic, Switzerland, Italy; <em>Mixosaurus kuhnschnyderi </em>(Brinkmann, 1998), Middle Triassic, Switzerland.

<strong><em>Mollesaurus </em>Fernández, 1999: </strong><em>Mollesaurus periallus </em>Fernández, 1999, Middle Jurassic, Argentina, possibly a junior synonym of <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>.

<strong><em>Nannopterygius</em> Huene, 1922: </strong><em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon</em> (Hulke, 1871), Upper Jurassic, England, Germany.

<strong><em>Omphalosaurus </em>Merriam, 1906:</strong><em> Omphalosaurus nevadanus </em>Merriam, 1906, Middle Triassic, USA; <em>Omphalosaurus nettarhynchus</em> Mazin, 1987, Middle Triassic, USA; <em>Omphalosaurus peyeri</em> Maisch and Lehmann, 2002, Middle Triassic, Germany; <em>Omphalosaurus wolfi</em> Tichy, 1995, Middle Triassic Germany; <em>Omphalosaurus merriami</em> Maisch, 2010, Lower Triassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> Seeley, 1874: </strong><em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> Seeley, 1874, Middle–Upper Jurassic, England, France; <em>Ophthalmosaurus natans</em> (Marsh, 1879), Upper Jurassic, USA; <em>Ophthalmosaurus saveljeviensis </em>(Arkhangelsky, 1997), Upper Jurassic, Russia; <em>Ophthalmosaurus yasikovi</em> (Efimov, 1999<em>a</em>), Upper Jurassic, Russia.

<strong><i>Palvennia</i> Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i>, 2012:</strong> <i>Palvennia hoybergeti</i> Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i>, 2012, Upper Jurassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Parvinatator</em></strong> <strong>Nicholls and Brinkman, 1995:</strong> <em>Parvinatator wapitiensis </em>Nicholls and Brinkman, 1995, Lower Triassic, Canada.

<strong><em>Pessopteryx</em></strong><strong>Wiman, 1910:</strong> <em>Pessopteryx nisseri</em> Wiman, 1910, Lower Triassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Phalarodon</em></strong> <strong>Merriam, 1910:</strong> <em>Phalarodon fraasi </em>Merriam, 1910, Lower–Middle Triassic, Canada, Middle Triassic, Switzerland, Svalbard; <em>Phalarodon major</em> (Huene, 1916), Middle Triassic, Germany, Switzerland; <em>Phalarodon callawayi</em> (Schmitz <em>et al.</em>, 2004), Middle Triassic, USA, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Phantomosaurus </em>Maisch and Matzke, 2000:</strong> <em>Phantomosaurus neubigi</em> (Sander, 1997), Middle Triassic, Germany.

<strong><em>Platypterygius</em> Huene, 1922: </strong><em>Platypterygius platydactylus</em> (Broili, 1908), Lower Cretaceous, Germany; <em>Platypterygius australis</em> (M'Coy, 1867), Lower Cretaceous, Australia; <em>Platypterygius hauthali</em> (Huene, 1927), Lower Cretaceous, Argentina; <em>Platypterygius americanus</em> (Nace, 1939), Lower Cretaceous, USA; <em>Platypterygius hercynicus</em> Kuhn, 1946, Lower Cretaceous, Germany; <em>Platypterygius kiprijannofi</em> Romer, 1968, Lower Cretaceous, Russia; <em>Platypterygius birjukovi</em> Otschev and Efimov, 1985, Lower Cretaceous, Russia; <em>Platypterygius bedengensis</em> (Efimov, 1997), Lower Cretaceous, Russia; <em>Platypterygius sachicarum</em> Páramo, 1997, Lower Cretaceous, Colombia; <em>Platypterygius bannovkenis</em> Arkhangelsky, 1998, Upper Cretaceous, Russia; <em>Platypterygius ochevi</em> Arkhangelsky <em>et al.</em>, 2008, Lower (Upper?) Cretaceous, Russia.

<strong><em>Qianichthyosaurus</em></strong> <strong>Li, 1999:</strong> <em>Qianichthyosaurus zhoui </em>Li, 1999, Upper Triassic, China.

<strong><em>Quasianosteosaurus </em></strong><strong>Maisch and Matzke, 2003:</strong> <em>Quasianosteosaurus vikinghoegdai </em>Maisch and Matzke, 2003, Lower Triassic, Svalbard.

<strong><em>Shastasaurus</em></strong> <strong>Merriam, 1895:</strong> <em>Shastasaurus pacificus </em>Merriam, 1895, Upper Triassic, USA; <em>Shastasaurus alexandrae</em> Merriam, 1902, Upper Triassic, USA; <em>Shastasaurus liangae </em>(Yin <em>et al.</em>, 2000), Upper Triassic, China; <em>Shastasaurus sikkaniensis </em>(Nicholls and Manabe, 2004), Upper Triassic, USA.

<strong><em>Shonisaurus</em></strong> <strong>Camp, 1976:</strong> <em>Shonisaurus popularis</em> Camp, 1976, Upper Triassic, USA.

<strong><em>Stenopterygius</em> Jaekel, 1904:</strong> <em>Stenopterygius quadriscissus</em> (Quenstedt, 1858), Lower Jurassic, Germany, Luxembourg, France; <em>Stenopterygius triscissus</em> (Quenstedt, 1858), Lower Jurassic, England, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium, Switzerland?; <em>Stenopterygius uniter</em> Huene, 1931, Lower Jurassic, Germany; <em>Stenopterygius aaleniensis </em>Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch, 2012, Middle Jurassic, Germany;<em> Stenopterygius cayi (</em>Fernández, 1994), Middle Jurassic, Argentina.

<strong><em>Suevoleviathan</em> Maisch, 1998: </strong><em>Suevoleviathan disinteger </em>(Huene, 1926), Lower Jurassic, Germany; <em>Suevoleviathan integer</em> (Bronn, 1844), Lower Jurassic, Germany.

<strong><em>Sveltonectes</em> Fischer <em>et al.</em>, 2011: </strong><em>Sveltonectes insolitus</em> Fischer <em>et al.</em>, 2011, Lower Cretaceous, Russia.

<strong><em>Temnodontosaurus </em>Lydekker, 1889:</strong> <em>Temnodontosaurus platyodon</em> (Conybeare, 1822), Lower Jurassic, England, Germany, Belgium; <em>Temnodontosaurus trigonodon</em> (Theodori, 1843), Lower Jurassic, Germany, France; <em>Temnodontosaurus crassimanus</em> (Blake, 1876), Lower Jurassic, England; <em>Temnodontosaurus</em> <em>nuertingensis</em> (Huene, 1931), Lower Jurassic, Germany; <em>Temnodontosaurus eurycephalus</em> (McGowan, 1974), Lower Jurassic, England; <em>Temnodontosaurus azerguensis </em>(Martin <em>et al.</em>, 2012), Lower Jurassic, France.

<strong><em>Thaisaurus</em> Mazin <em>et al.</em>, 1991:</strong> <em>Thaisaurus chonglakmanii</em> Mazin <em>et al.</em>, 1991, Lower Triassic, Thailand.

<em><strong>Thalattoarchon</strong></em><strong> Fröbisch <em>et al.</em>,</strong> <strong>2013:</strong><em> Thalattoarchon saurophagis</em> Fröbisch <em>et al.</em>, 2013, Middle Triassic, USA.

<strong><em>Tholodus </em>Meyer, 1851:</strong> <em>Tholodus schmidi</em> Meyer, 1851, Middle Triassic, Germany, China?.

<strong><em>Toretocnemus</em> Merriam, 1903:</strong> <em>Toretocnemus californicus</em> Merriam, 1903, Upper Triassic, USA; <em>Toretocnemus zitteli</em> Merriam, 1903, Upper Triassic, USA.

<strong><em>Undorosaurus</em> Efimov, 1999<em>b</em>: </strong><em>Undorosaurus gorodischensis </em>Efimov, 1999<em>b</em>, Upper Jurassic, Russia.

<strong><em>Utatsusaurus</em> Shikama, Kamei and Murata, 1978:</strong> <em>Utatsusaurus hataii</em> Shikama, Kamei and Murata, 1978, Lower Triassic, Japan, Canada.

<strong><em>Wimanius</em></strong> <strong>Maisch and Matzke, 1998<em>a</em>:</strong> <em>Wimanius odontopalatus </em>Maisch and Matzke, 1998<em>a</em>, Middle Triassic, Switzerland.

<strong><em>Xinminosaurus</em></strong> <strong>Jiang <em>et al.</em>, 2008:</strong> <em>Xinminosaurus catactes </em>Jiang <em>et al.</em>, 2008, possibly synonymous with <em>Tholodus schmidi.</em>]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Ichthyosaur palaeontology</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2012 13:49:12 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<strong>[This page is not yet fully formed and more features will be added.]</strong>

On this page are links to several other pages covering many aspects of ichthyosaur palaeontology. As this section is currently being planned and devised, not all pages are available, but should be added soon.
<h1><a title="Ichthyosaur taxonomy" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/">Ichthyosaur taxonomy</a></h1>
Taxonomy is the classification of living things. This page has a list of ichthyosaur genera and species: each genus may contain one or more species.
<h1>Ichthyosaur systematics</h1>
Systematics is related to taxonomy, both is concerned with classification. Here systematics will be used to cover the higher level taxonomy; how ichthyosaurs are related to each other.
<h1>Ichthyosaur biology</h1>
The biology of ichthyosaurs has been widely discussed over many years. This page will showcase some of the theories.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>News Flash! Changes to naming of animals procedure</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/04/news-flash-changes-to-naming-of-animals-procedure/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 04 Sep 2012 10:37:01 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=235</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<h1>The International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature today amended the ICZN to allow naming of animals via electronic publication.</h1>
Today, an amendment to the <em>International Code of Zoological Nomenclature</em> was published in the (open access) journal <em>ZooKeys</em>. This is an important change as it concerns the publishing of valid names.
<h1>The ICZN</h1>
In zoology, names of organisms are important; you’ll probably know a few, particularly ones that I’ve been using — e.g. <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>. To make sure that names are assigned to a single organism, i.e. the same name isn’t used for many different animals, the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature (here referred to as ICommZN) was set up. A similar organisation exists for plants, algae and fungi (International Commission of Nomenclature for algae, fungi, and plants). Along with this, the ICommZN developed the <em>International Code of Zoological Nomenclature </em>(ICZN).

The ICZN sets out the rules about how animals should be named. This includes everything from how many parts in the name (one for genera, two for species), how it should look (e.g. italicised or not), how and where it should be published, how to change names, what date is used and so on. This means that a full species name should look like: <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> Seeley, 1874, including the generic name (<em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>), specific name (<em>icenicus</em>), author (Seeley) and year of publication (1874).

Previously, the ICZN has required that official names be published in ‘numerous identical and durable copies’ (ICZN, article 8.1.3.1). This usually required that several paper (or optical disc) copies of the article containing the name be deposited in archives worldwide. In recent years, this has been a problem for online, electronic only publications such as PLOS ONE. They have followed this by specially producing durable paper copies for deposition (see e.g. Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch (2012), p. 3, ‘Nomenclatural Acts’). The changes in the code published today (International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature 2012) have changed that.
<h1>Electronic publication</h1>
It’s probably easiest to directly quote the relevant section from the publication:
<blockquote>[Article] 8.5. Works issued and distributed electronically. To be considered published, a work issued and distributed electronically must
<p style="padding-left:30px;">8.5.1. have been issued after 2011,</p>
<p style="padding-left:30px;">8.5.2. state the date of publication in the work itself, and</p>
<p style="padding-left:30px;">8.5.3. be registered in the Official Register of Zoological Nomenclature (ZooBank) (see Article 78.2.4) and contain evidence in the work itself that such registration has occurred.</p>
<p style="padding-left:60px;">8.5.3.1. The entry in the Official Register of Zoological Nomenclature must give the name and Internet address of an organization other than the publisher that is intended to permanently archive the work in a manner that preserves the content and layout, and is capable of doing so. This information is not required to appear in the work itself.</p>
<p style="padding-left:60px;">8.5.3.2. The entry in the Official Register of Zoological Nomenclature must give an ISBN for the work or an ISSN for the journal containing the work. The number is not required to appear in the work itself.</p>
<p style="padding-left:60px;">8.5.3.3. An error in stating the evidence of registration does not make a work unavailable, provided that the work can be unambiguously associated with a record created in the Official Register of Zoological Nomenclature before the work was published <em>(International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature 2012, pp. 3–4).</em></p>
</blockquote>
Simply put, this requires the name to have been published on or after 1 January 2012, dated and registered in the Official Register (as well as adhering to all other articles).

While most electronic only publications have used similar methods to PLOS ONE to make sure that nomenclatural acts meet the requirements of the ICZN, this has required emplacement of a procedure to ensure its validity. This change in the ICZN has removed the need for papers copies and embraced the digital age. Electronic publishing can be much easier and cheaper than physical media; you only need a single pdf to spread to the world. The apparently simple change of allowing dissemination by electronic means support for the direction of modern scientific publishing: the increase in online repositories and especially for online-only open access journals. Spreading the knowledge of science should be made easier.
<p style="padding-left:30px;"><em>I was first notified by the changes by Heinrich Mallison on his blog at <a title="Dinosaur Palaeo ICZN 2012" href="http://dinosaurpalaeo.wordpress.com/2012/09/04/did-the-earth-move-for-you" target="_blank">Dinosaur Palaeo</a></em><em>. Others will doubtless write about this, Mike Taylor at <a title="SV-POW ICZN 2012" href="http://svpow.com/2012/09/04/the-iczn-now-recognises-electronic-publication/" target="_blank">SV-POW</a></em><em> has already done so. Further information can be found at the ICommZN website: </em><a href="http://iczn.org"><em>http://iczn.org</em><em>.</em></a></p>

<h1>References</h1>
<a title="ICZN amendment 2012" href="http://www.pensoft.net/journals/zookeys/article/3944/" target="_blank">INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION ON ZOOLOGICAL NOMENCLATURE. 2012. Amendment of Articles 8, 9, 10, 21 and 78 of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature to expand and refine methods of publication. <em>ZooKeys</em>, <strong>219</strong>, 1–10.</a>

<a title="New Aalenian ichtyhosaur 2012" href="http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0041692.t001" target="_blank">MAXWELL, E. E., FERNÁNDEZ, M. S. and SCHOCH, R. R. 2012. First diagnostic marine reptile remains from the Aalenian (Middle Jurassic): a new ichthyosaur from southwestern Germany. <em>PLOS ONE</em>, <strong>7</strong>, e41692.</a>

SEELEY, H. G. 1874. On the pectoral arch and fore limb of <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>, a new ichthyosaurian genus from the Oxford Clay. <em>Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society</em>, <strong>30</strong>, 696–707.]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[The ICZN now recognises electronic publication! &laquo; Sauropod Vertebra Picture of the Week #AcademicSpring]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-09-04 11:04:41</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[...] Overview at Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life [...]]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Pages and pages and pages</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/11/pages-and-pages-and-pages/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2012 18:59:05 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=258</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<em>Ichthyosaurs: a day in the life…</em> is growing, the website that is. Following a hectic week of much reference checking and cross-checking, I have compiled a list: a <a title="Ichthyosaur taxonomy" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/">list of ichthyosaurs</a>.

You can find this list in the new ‘Ichthyosaur palaeontology’ tab at the top of the page. From that I’m sure that you can guess my aspirations. While there are many aspects of ichthyosaur palaeontology that can change rapidly, having such basic data can be important to keep up stock of the science. It also provides the ‘canvas’ to be worked upon within any particular group.
<h1>Taxonomy-nommy-nom-nom</h1>
This list is on the page entitled ‘Ichthyosaur taxonomy’. Taxonomy is the study of classifying organisms; plants, fungi, animals and more. Particularly, taxonomy, specifically ‘alpha taxonomy’ is concerned with the description, identification and naming of organisms. So this page of ichthyosaur taxonomy features a list of all valid ichthyosaur names, arranged alphabetically. As I’ve said before, and reminded last week, the naming of organisms is regulated by the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Each name has two parts: generic and specific, usually with the name of the first author following this.

The author included is the first to describe and name the species itself, so includes the author(s) surnames and the year of publication. This may or may not be enclosed in brackets: no brackets means that the name is the same as originally published, e.g. <em>Cymbospondylus piscosus</em> Leidy, 1868 was first named by Leidy in 1868, and hasn’t been changed.

Sometimes, the names of organisms can change. This may be because the name is given to a species which has been named before, or if the name has been used before. It can also happen if new material means that the genus should be changed. An example would be <em>Ichthyosaurus enthekiodon</em> Hulke, 1871 (as originally named by Hulke in 1871). The generic name was changed by Huene in 1922 to separate it from other <em>Ichthyosaurus</em>. So the genus is <em>Nannopterygius</em> Huene, 1922, but the species became <em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon</em> (Hulke, 1871).
<h1>The list itself</h1>
There are a few things that can be taken simply from the list, mostly related to diversity. The <del>108</del> 98 species in 53 genera mean that many genera have only a single species. This is at odds with the state about 100 years ago, when all species were placed in only a few taxa (<em>Ichthyosaurus</em> was the only genus from 1818 until 1874, when Seeley erected <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em>). That situation is still found, particularly in the Cretaceous genus <em>Platypterygius</em> (11 genera), but also in <em>Ichthyosaurus</em> (5 genera), <em>Temnodontosaurus</em> (5 genera) and <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> (4 genera). McGowan and Motani (2003, <em>Handbook of Paleoherpetology</em>) suggested that some genera should be synonymised, including questioning the relatively high diversity from the Middle Triassic Grenzbitumenzone in Switzerland and Italy. A later version will hopefully include all non-valid taxa, for whatever reason, too. This will show the development of ichthyosaur study through time.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Contact</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/about/contact/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 11 Sep 2012 19:54:50 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?page_id=266</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Here are some ways you can contact me. Feel free to send any queries or questions you might have.
<h1>Comments</h1>
You can leave a comment at the bottom of posts or click on the speech bubble above the posts on the main page.
<h1>Email</h1>
You can send me an email to <a href="mailto:benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk" target="_blank">benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</a>.
<h1>Pen and paper</h1>
If electronic messages aren't your thing, you can send me a letter to:

Benjamin Moon
School of Earth Sciences
University of Bristol
Wills Memorial Building
Queens Road
Bristol
BS8 1RJ
United Kingdom]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Deep Diving Dinosaurs? Time to Write a Letter.</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/07/31/deep-diving-dinosaurs-time-to-write-a-letter-2/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 31 Jul 2012 13:26:18 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>protohedgehog</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://fossilsandshit.wordpress.com/?p=272</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p style="text-align:justify;">Deep-diving dinosaurs! How cool would that be?! At least, if it wasn't total nonsense and possibly another example of a peer-reviewing fiasco. This is the title of a new article from a journal that usually produces pretty damn good science, especially of the Palaeo breed. It's not worth delving into the content of the article, but what it demonstrates is a complete failing on the part of either the author or publishers, and propagation of misinformation from the scholarly domain. This article is actually about decompression pathologies in marine reptiles and sperm whales as a response to an earlier article on the same topic.</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><!--more--></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">As any five year old will tell you, ichthyosaurs are not dinosaurs. Although they are both reptiles, the only aquatic dinosaurs to have ever existed are probably penguins, and they don't look much like giant 'fish lizards' (the Greek etymology for ichthyosaurs). The prevalent hypothesis is that some form of proto-ichthyosaurs diverged from a reptilian relative of dinosaurs at some point during the early Triassic and decided that an aquatic life was more blissful. This does not make them dinosaurs.</p>


[caption id="attachment_273" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://fossilsandshit.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/ichthyosaurus_bw.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-273 alignleft" title="Ichthyosaurus_BW" src="http://fossilsandshit.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/ichthyosaurus_bw.jpg" alt="" width="584" height="266" /></a> Ichthyosaur[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_274" align="aligncenter" width="397"]<a href="http://fossilsandshit.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dino.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-274" title="dino" src="http://fossilsandshit.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dino.jpg" alt="" width="397" height="489" /></a> Not an ichthyosaur (I think)[/caption]
<p style="text-align:justify;">Being a reply to a previous article in Naturwissenschaften, you might expect that the title be somewhat relevant to it. It's not. There's not a single reference to dinosaurs in it, unless you kind of agglomerate several fragments of words, which apparently doesn't count. According to Naturwissenschaften, articles in the Comments and Reply section are “to stimulate scientific discussion or elaborate on opposing view in response to an article published in the journal.” Is this an excuse to make such fundamental mistakes? Surely someone still has to review the content of these, as they form a significant part of the scientific process.</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">As a response to this, I’m going to send the following letter to their Publishing Editor, <a href="mailto:Paul.Roos@springer.com">Paul Roos</a>:</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Dear Mr Roos,</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>I am writing to you to express my concern over the online publication of a recent article in Naturwissenschaften.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>The title, ‘<a href="http://www.springerlink.com/content/hjm813150x34x322/?MUD=MP">Deep-diving dinosaurs</a>’, is significantly misleading and propagates misinformation from the scientific community, as the article has absolutely no involvement of dinosaurs. The article regards the pathologies resulting from decompression in marine reptiles and sperm whales. No authoritative sources have ever claimed dinosaurs to be marine reptiles, or vice versa. There is a host of scientific evidence illustrating the relationships between the two groups, and the title of this article only occludes this knowledge. Despite being published in the ‘Comments and Reply’ section, these articles still have substantial face in scientific discourse, and should be considered equivalent in value to full articles. As a Palaeontologist, this sort of misinformation is deeply concerning when appearing in what is typically regarded as a high profile journal, especially given several recent errors in the communication of Palaeontology by several media outlets.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>It is clear that either the peer-review process in this circumstance was faulty or entirely absent. In either case, I recommend reviewing the process to find how such a glaring mistake could have made it through the writing to publication processes, or considering broadening your peer-review policies to encompass supplementary articles within your journal. The alternative is that this is the deliberate pushing of an incoherent title to the article content, which I am sure is not the case in this matter.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>I would further recommend that, before this article goes to print, the matter is resolved to avoid further confusion. If the author is aware of this discordance, questions should be asked about whether or not a Pathologist should be certified to publish on the subject of Palaeontology without some form of consultation with a relevant expert in the field, to avoid such mistakes as this in the future. This is not a comment regarding the actual substance of the article, merely on the misleading and incoherent link between title and content.  </em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Yours sincerely,</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Jon Tennant</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">I’ll hold off sending for about 48 hours from writing this, so that anyone else who wishes can become a signatory on the letter. If you would like to, please leave a comment below or drop me an <a href="mailto:jon.tennant.2@gmail.com">email</a>. I’ll rewrite the letter accordingly if more people chose to sign.</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">So yeah, the moral of the story is to at the very least, in a time when access to scientific information is increasing, get the very basic facts right, and make sure the title isn't incredibly misleading as to the content of an article. I can't possibly think of any deliberate motivation behind such falsehoods, except to grab a bit more media attention, but it's just such an obvious mistake that it's difficult to perceive as just an accidental or oversight at some point during the writing to publication process.</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">If someone reading this article didn't know any better, they would now consider ichthyosaurs to be dinosaurs, or vice versa. This is a classic case of communicating misinformation, and really needs to stop.</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><strong>UPDATE!</strong></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">Comments from <a href="https://twitter.com/JohnRHutchinson">John Hutchinson</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/rmounce">Ross Mounce</a> below made me rethink the approach of writing this letter. Following their advice, I've drafted the following letter instead:</p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Dear Mr Roos, </em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>I am writing to you to express my concern over the online publication of a recent article in Naturwissenschaften. The article, titled 'Deep-Diving Dinosaurs' is misleading in it's conflation of dinosaurs and ichthyosaurs, the latter of which are the subject of the paper. Dinosaurs are not ichthyosaurs, and vice versa, as any credible source can reveal. This discrepancy between the title of the article and the content should have been picked up during the review or editorial process. Could you please correct this, especially before the article goes to print to avoid the propagation of misinformation.</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Yours sincerely,</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;"><em>Jon Tennant</em></p>
<p style="text-align:justify;">Less ranty, short and concise. Cheers John - I'd be an idiot not to take your advice!</p>]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>It's fun to stay at the SVPCA!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/13/its-fun-to-stay-at-the-svpca/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 13 Sep 2012 15:00:04 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=275</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Yesterday, I was in Oxford, at the Natural History Museum for the annual set of joy that is the <a title="SVPCA" href="http://svpca.org" target="_blank">Symposium of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy</a> (SVPCA). Sadly I could only be there for the day, although the symposium is a week long. Conferences are always fun; there are interesting talks, meeting old friends again, making new acquaintances and large amounts of free tea and alcohol! (It’ doesn’t all have to be hard work.)
<h1>New and now stuff</h1>
There were 16 talks throughout the day yesterday, fortunately spread out with a lunch and tea breaks. I couldn’t get to the ichthyosaur talk (not just an ichthyosaur talk, but <em>the</em> ichthyosaur talk!) on Tuesday. (This was a change from last year where much of a day was spent on ichthyosaurs and other marine reptiles.) However, there were many other talks to satisfy me including:
<ul>
	<li>Work on the Weymouth Bay Pliosaur, taxonomy and function.</li>
	<li>Enigmatic archosaurs.</li>
	<li>Pterosaur ontogeny and evolution.</li>
	<li>Dinosaurs, of course.</li>
</ul>
As comparative anatomy suggests, this was a chance to show many pictures of fossil bones, which is what many of us go to see. There was of course the odd set of graphs, but fortunately they were coloured to take the edge off.
<h1>Many meetings</h1>
Meeting people is always fun (as long as you have something to say). It’s good to talk about their work, your work and everything in between. Yesterday, was a chance to grab a present (a <em>Bulletin of the British Museum  (Natural History)</em>) from Sam Bennett of Royal Holloway, London, and discuss with him, Dean Lomax of Doncaster Museum, and Paul Barrett, Natural History Museum, London, about potential ichthyosaur work that needs to be done there. I also spoke to Darren Naisch (not Nash), Southampton University, about Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs and further projects.

Most exciting are some of the new people you get to meet. Yesterday, after passing a few emails between us, I finally had the chance to meet Aubrey Roberts. Aubrey is a Masters student at the University of Oslo, working on the Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs from Spitsbergen. Having lived in Norway for a long time, she retains an excellent British accent, a reminder that she was born in Hampshire! Aubrey also showed me many exciting specimens of the weird-looking ichthyosaurs she’s working on. You can stalk Aubrey <a title="Aubrey Roberts stuff" href="http://www.masterbloggen.no/blog/author/aubrey/" target="_blank">here</a>, and see all the exciting fieldwork she’s been doing. The website is in Norwegian, but Google Translate will cut through that easily… probably.

It was also good to see many of my chums and chummettes (WordPress thinks that should be corrected to 'courgettes') from Portsmouth University. Shout-out to Luke, one of the <a title="Ancient Anglers" href="http://ancientanglers.wordpress.com" target="_blank"><em>Ancient Anglers</em></a>; <a title="Mark Witton homepage" href="http://www.markwitton.com" target="_blank">Mark</a>, who drew most of the pterosaurs yesterday; Georgia, for wanting to meet Mike Benton; Irish Mike, for that moustache and any others whom I haven’t listed.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
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  <title>Ichthyosaurs all aswim</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/18/ichthyosaurs-all-aswim/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 18 Sep 2012 08:00:28 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=278</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[There hasn't been much ichthyosaurs themselves over the past few posts. So, just to keep you die-hards happy, here's a little montage featuring a gamut of ichthyosaurs, representative of the major groups. Top left to bottom right, spiralling in, there are <em>Utatsusaurus</em>, <em>Mixosaurus</em> and <em>Cymbospondylus</em> by Nobu Tamura, and <em>Ophthalmosaurus </em>(with some ammonites) and <em>Temnodontosaurus</em> by Dmitry Bogdanov. The original images were taken from wikipedia.com.

<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaur-montage.png"><img class="aligncenter size-full wp-image-279" title="Ichthyosaur montage" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/ichthyosaur-montage.png" alt="A school? of ichthyosaurs. Images by Dmitry Bogdanov and Nobu Tamura." width="584" height="462" /></a>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
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<item>
  <title>Open the doors, let the people come</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/15/open-the-doors-let-the-people-come-2/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 15 Sep 2012 19:42:41 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=285</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[A while ago, I promised that I’d talk a bit more about Open Access and the open access movement. Here is the blog post that I finally give to you, a little later than planned, but better than never. Interestingly enough, I’m writing this whilst watching the sun rise (it’s 6:36 am), sitting on a train, heading towards Oxford. This is because I am on my way to <a title="It’s fun to stay at the SVPCA!" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/13/its-fun-to-stay-at-the-svpca/">SVPCA</a>, which I will talk about in yet another post. (This may mean that you get three new posts in little over a week! Aren’t you lucky.) I don’t intend to cover this in too much detail as many others have done it better than I could, but a little info shouldn’t go amiss.
<h1>The plight</h1>
When I covered the problems of journal access (see <a title="A shadow grows in Academia" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/05/02/a-shadow-grows-in-academia/" target="_blank"><em>A shadow grows in Academia</em></a>), I mentioned the current model where authors submit their work to a journal, who then charge people to get access to that article. This has been the model for much of the ~350 years that journals have been published, and far before that for academic books.

It’s all well and good (really?), but it does mean that someone has to pay: an individual, maybe £35 per day; institutions, £20 000 per year. That’s a lot of money, especially if you think that a decently reference 10 page article may have over 50 articles cited. It is one of the most annoying things in research to find a not necessarily obscure article I need, only to be presented with a ‘log in’ or ‘please pay to access this material’ dialogue. This is fortunately not too frequent, as the University of Bristol pays a lot of money to avoid that.
<h1>The solution</h1>
The current model, where the reader pays, works well for publishers. The need a .pdf file, a website and a way to get money. The printer and envelope are usual extras. The benefit for them is that they only need a single .pdf file to get a payment each time it is accessed: one author equals many small payments.

Open access switches this. There are two favoured forms, gold and green open access.  In gold, the <em>author</em> pays to publish, the reader does not. The price the author pays is apparently necessary to cover all editing, review, publishing and hosting costs. Green open access retains the reader-pays at the publisher, but also has the article added to an open online repository; post review and editing, but not necessarily formatted. The cost of green is that publishers may require a delay before the article can be added to the open repository.
<h1>The actions</h1>
Some journals are open access; PLOS’s journals are the most oft-cited examples. The author pays to publish, and the world gets to hear their research. PLOS is also different in that it will accept any sound science; other journals worry about ‘impact factor’ which has also been heavily criticised recently.

Earlier this year in the Finch Report, a review of UK research publishing made the recommendation that academics funded by research councils, and thus taxpayers, should make their work available through open access means: the funders can read about what their money has done. It was also suggested that this move could save much money (a <em>lot</em>). The fall out from this is best discussed over at <a title="Reciprocal Space" href="http://occamstypewriter.org/scurry/2012/09/05/key-questions-for-open-access-policy-in-the-uk/" target="_blank"><em>Reciprocal Space</em></a>, check it out.

In this modern age of the World Wide Web, digital publishing is becoming the norm. eBooks have become a huge market thanks to eReaders, smartphones and tablet devices. The .pdf file format can be read by virtually every computer, a .pdf reading application being one of the must-haves. Data storage is cheap and easy. The world is rapid and interconnected in a way we didn’t have just 20 (or even 10) years ago.

So why not let everyone use this?]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>285</wp:post_id>
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  <title>Lookee here</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/17/lookee-here/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 17 Sep 2012 16:21:02 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=288</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Following common sense, and good manners. I have put up notice on the right of the main page that this blog is now licensed under Creative Commons Open Access.

<a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_GB" rel="license"><img style="border-width:0;" src="http://i.creativecommons.org/l/by-sa/3.0/88x31.png" alt="Creative Commons Licence" /></a>
This work is licensed under a <a href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en_GB" rel="license">Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License</a>.

This means that my material I have posted can be used and modified from this site, as long as the original author/creator/inventor is given credit. Where there have been changes made, these should be made available under a compatible (e.g. fair use) license too.

Other people's images etc will need their permission to reuse. Comments remain the creations (also creators) of their respective authors.

Enjoy!]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>288</wp:post_id>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com</wp:comment_author_url>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>137.222.114.240</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2012-09-17 17:31:20</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-09-17 16:31:20</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[You can go to the Creative Commons Licenses webpage http://creativecommons.org/choose/. There you can copy the HTML text. Paste it into a 'Text' widget and place that on your sidebar or wherever. (I hope that makes sense.)]]></wp:comment_content>
    <wp:comment_approved>1</wp:comment_approved>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[protohedgehog]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>jon.tennant.2@gmail.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://greenteaandvelociraptors.wordpress.com/</wp:comment_author_url>
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    <wp:comment_date>2012-09-17 17:23:45</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2012-09-17 16:23:45</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Awesome! How did you do this btw? I've always meant to, but could never find a widget..]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[protohedgehog]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>jon.tennant.2@gmail.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[It did! Cheers dude. Looks much more professional now :)]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Mike from Ottawa]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA["Comments remain the creator of their respective authors."

I know you meant that to be "creations" but coincidentally, I had come across today this from Kurt Vonnegut: "We are who we pretend to be ..." so I immediately thought that your original is actually true as well.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Haha, thanks for that; I hadn't noticed it!

I've changed it, but retained the original. I can use it as proof of my subconscious philosophising!]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>New ichthyosaur species!</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/09/18/new-ichthyosaur-species/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 18 Sep 2012 15:25:16 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=298</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Not long after posting my recent <em>Ichthyosaur taxonomy</em> page, with its <a title="Ichthyosaur taxonomy" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/">list of valid genera</a>, I find myself needing amend it; but in a good way.

Published today in the journal <em>Palaeontology</em> is the description of a new Lower Jurassic ichthyosaur from France: <em>Temnodontosaurus azerguensis</em>.

<a title="Temnodontosaurus azerguensis" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2012.01159.x/abstract;jsessionid=34EB11AC1FC35D888053FFD4BFB95496.d04t01" target="_blank">MARTIN, J. E., FISCHER, V., VINCENT, P. and SUAN, G. 2012. A longirostrine <em>Temnodontosaurus</em> (Ichthyosauria) with comments on Early Jurassic ichthyosaur niche partitioning and disparity. <em>Palaeontology</em>, <strong>55</strong>, 995–1005.</a>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>298</wp:post_id>
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  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="ichthyosaurs"><![CDATA[ichthyosaurs]]></category>
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  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="jurassic"><![CDATA[Jurassic]]></category>
  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="marine-reptile"><![CDATA[marine reptile]]></category>
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  <category domain="post_tag" nicename="niche-partitioning"><![CDATA[niche partitioning]]></category>
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<item>
  <title>Ichthyosaurian update</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/10/01/ichthyosaurian-update/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 01 Oct 2012 14:41:10 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=302</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[A little update to the site, with some ichthyosaur news.

As posted on <a title="Marine Reptiles Forum: Arthropterygius in Argentina" href="http://www.plesiosaur.com/forum/index.php?topic=923.msg3768#msg3768" target="_blank">The Marine Reptiles Forum</a>, there is a new paper in press on an <a class="zem_slink" title="Argentina" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=-34.6,-58.3833333333&amp;spn=10.0,10.0&amp;q=-34.6,-58.3833333333 (Argentina)&amp;t=h" rel="geolocation" target="_blank">Argentinian</a> Upper Jurassic ichthyosaur, assigned to <em>Arthropterygius</em>.

<a title="Arthropterygius in Argentina" href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0016699512000678?v=s5" target="_blank">FERNÁNDEZ, M. S. &amp; MAXWELL, E. 2012. The genus <em>Arthropterygius</em> Maxwell (Ichthyosauria: Ophthalmosauridae) in the Late Jurassic of the Neuquén Basin, Argentina. <em>Geobios</em>, 10 pp.</a>

This, and other things have lead me to update my <a title="Ichthyosaur taxonomy" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/">ichthyosaur species list</a>.

I've been away on fieldwork (demonstrating <a class="zem_slink" title="Geologic map" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geologic_map" rel="wikipedia" target="_blank">geological mapping</a> for second-year undergraduates) so haven't got any new posts today. However, I shall be in <a class="zem_slink" title="Glasgow" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=55.858,-4.259&amp;spn=0.1,0.1&amp;q=55.858,-4.259 (Glasgow)&amp;t=h" rel="geolocation" target="_blank">Glasgow</a> looking at their collections next week; so more things to come.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>302</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2012-10-01 15:41:10</wp:post_date>
  <wp:post_date_gmt>2012-10-01 14:41:10</wp:post_date_gmt>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Diving with Shonisaurus | The Written Blit]]></wp:comment_author>
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<item>
  <title>New, new, new</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/10/15/new-new-new/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 15 Oct 2012 19:12:23 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=316</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Y'know, it's the same old thing: you wait ages for new ichthyosaurs, then several come along at once! I notice this seems to have started after putting up my <a title="Ichthyosaur taxonomy" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/ichthyosaur-palaeontology/ichthyosaur-taxonomy/" target="_blank">list of ichthyosaurs</a>; just so that I'd have to keep changing it!

This time round, the ichthyosaurs are more exotic than most. Recent palaeontological research in Spitsbergen, Svalbard has brought up many finds of marine reptiles. A whole series of papers on Upper Jurassic strata, especially the Slottsmøya formation, has recently been published in the <a title="Norwegian Journal of Geology" href="http://www.geologi.no/cgi-bin/geologi/imaker?id=3799" target="_blank"><em>Norwegian Journal of Geology</em></a>; and the great thing is, they're all free to access 😀!

There are lots to see in this issue, so I'll be back with more to say once I've taken it all in!

<a title="Svalbard Ophthalmosaurids 2012" href="http://www.geologi.no/data/f/0/21/00/9_2401_0/NJG_2_3_2012_17_Druckenmiller_etal_Pr.pdf" target="_blank">DRUCKENMILLER, P. S., HURUM, J. H., KNUTSEN, E. M. &amp; NAKREM, H. A. 2012. Two new ophthalmosaurids (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Agardhfjellet Formation (Upper Jurassic: Volgian/Tithonian), Svalbard, Norway. <em>Norwegian Journal of Geology</em>, <strong>92</strong>, 311–339.</a> 🔓]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>151</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Aubrey Roberts]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_date>2012-10-15 22:50:45</wp:comment_date>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[A result of 8 years of work, and there will be more!]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>165</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Diving with Shonisaurus | The Written Blit]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[...] New, new, new (ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com) [...]]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>In the land of Svalbard...</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/11/20/in-the-land-of-svalbard/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 20 Nov 2012 12:13:22 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=318</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<h1>Introduction</h1>
As I promised, here is a longer post looking at the ichthyosaurs recently described  (Druckenmiller <em>et al.</em> 2012), and more about palaeontological research, in the land of Svalbard. The original article, with descriptions and many images, can be accessed <a title="Norwegian Journal of Geology, v.92, n.2–3" href="http://www.geologi.no/cgi-bin/geologi/imaker?id=6862&amp;visdybde=1&amp;aktiv=6862" target="_blank">here</a>, it's open access🔓. This post will be more formally set out for three reasons: (1) I’m trying a new program to see whether this can streamline my thought and writing (2) there’s been a lot of research, particularly recently, to come from Svalbard (3) I haven’t written at any length for a while, so I thought I should.

While the northern parts of the World have received much attention due to climatic changes (which are happening whether or not you believe this has been caused by human burning of fossil fuels), significant coverage by ice does not lend itself to geological fieldwork easily. Svalbard is an archipelago of Norway, 400 miles north of mainland Europe. The main island, Spitsbergen, is the largest and most inhabited of the archipelago, and where much of the research to be discussed took place. In the middle of the west coast of Spitsbergen, is the inlet of Isfjorden. The research took place on the southern coast of this, Northwest of Longyearbyen. The fieldwork recovered many fossils, identifying a new marine reptile lagerstätte — the Slottsmøya Member — and the recent <i>Norwegian Journal of Geology</i> has many papers on the plesiosaurs. In addition, there is an article on two new opthalmosaurids: <i>Cryopterygius kristiansenae</i> and <i>Palvennia hoybergeti</i>.

[caption id="attachment_322" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_geology.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-322" title="Druckenmilleretal_2012_geology" alt="" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_geology.jpg" height="278" width="584" /></a> The geology on the southern bank of the Isfjord, Svalbard (inset), showing the local geology and location of the finds. From Druckenmiller et al. 2012.[/caption]
<h1>History of ichthyosaur palaeontology in Svalbard</h1>
Svalbard has been a haven of vertebrate palaeontology research for over 100 years. Much has been done on the Triassic material (Cox and Smith 1973). Some of the earliest collections were by Nordenskiöld in 1864 and 1868, and described by Hulke (1873). These included ichthyosaur remains for which Hulke erected <i>Ichthyosaurus</i> <i>nordenskioeldii</i> and <i>Ichthyosaurus</i> <i>polaris </i>(later referred to <i>Mixosaurus</i> (Baur 1887)). Wiman (1910) later reappraised this and erected <i>Pessosaurus</i> for <i>Ichthyosaurus polaris </i>and described four new species for which he created the genus <i>Pessopteryx</i>. Merriam (1911) commented on this, the scrappy nature of the material, and how <i>Pessopteryx </i> was similar in form to <i>Omphalosaurus</i>. It was also from the Triassic of Svalbard that Wiman described the then most basal ichthyosaurian taxon <i>Grippia longirostris</i> (Wiman 1929). From then until the 1980s, there was little work done on the ichthyosaur fauna of Svalbard. Mazin (1981; 1983) restarted this with work on <i>Grippia</i> and the probable ichthyosaur <i>Omphalosaurus</i>. At this time the main attraction of Svalbard, in terms of ichthyosaurs, continued to be the Triassic (Sander 1992; 1998; Maisch and Matzke 2002; 2003). While there is a large body of research on the Triassic ichthyosaurs of Svalbard, there are almost none on those from the Jurassic. Plesiosaurs have been studied to a limited extent too, but the only example of a Jurassic ichthyosaur is a rostrum assigned to <i>Brachypterygius</i> (Angst <i>et al.</i> 2010).
<h1><em>Cryopterygius kristiansenae</em></h1>
This new genus and species, <i>Cryopterygius kristiansenae</i>, is a large ichthyosaur, especially for the Late Jurassic, about 5.5 m long. Many features make this ichthyosaur different from others; the diagnosis takes up most of a column. What is great about this specimen is that it is very complete and exceptionally preserved—another of the papers in the issue is about the Slottsmøya Member lagerstätte, where this ichthyosaur was found. So, what makes this ichthyosaur different from others?

[caption id="attachment_324" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-324" title="Druckenmilleretal_2012_Cryopterygius" alt="" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_cryopterygius.jpg" height="291" width="584" /></a> Cryopterygius kristiansenae near-complete skeleton showing the left side. the skull and forepaddle are clearly preserved in profile. From Druckenmiller et al. 2012.[/caption]

Well, there are mix of many small differences, which add up to quite a big difference, and many more noticeable. The differential diagnosis, where the important differences are set out, lists about 20 characters, three of which are unique among ichthyosaurs, or its closer family (autapomorphic): a distinct 90° angle at the posterior of the lachrymal, an element behind the quadratojugal with a ventral projection, V-shaped notch on the dorsal margin of the presacral neural spines. Another visible difference, and important from my point of view, is in the forepaddle. In <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i>, the humerus contacts three bones of the hands, and the same is found in <i>Brachypterygius</i>. However, in <i>Cryopterygius</i>, there are only two facets, for articulation with two bones. This is similar to that found in both the Lower Jurassic, such as <i>Ichthyosaurus</i>, but also in the Cretaceous <i>Platypterygius</i>. Also interesting is that the bones of the hand are clearly more polygonal than the British species from a similar time, although there is quite a bit of variation. The pelvis as usual, is small and does not contact the vertebral column. The ischiopubis has a prong that sticks out to the front, the gap between most likely allowed nerves to pass through.
<h1><em>Palvennia hoybergeti</em></h1>
[caption id="attachment_323" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia.jpg"><img class="size-full wp-image-323" title="Druckenmilleretal_2012_Palvennia" alt="" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2012/11/druckenmilleretal_2012_palvennia.jpg" height="269" width="584" /></a> Palvennia hoybergeti, skull in dorsal(ish) view. The skull has been crushed so that the side can also be seen. From Druckenmiller et al. 2012.[/caption]

The other new ichthyosaur <i>Palvennia hoybergeti</i>, is not as complete as <i>Cryopterygius</i>: it is only know from a skull, and then you can only really see the top and bottom! This skull is over 80 cm, making <i>Palvennia</i> a medium- to large-sized ichthyosaur. The only autapomorphy is the very large pineal foramen, a hole in the top of the skull. However, <i>Palvennia</i> is also noteworthy in having a very high orbital ratio (McGowan 1976). This is a measure of the relative size of the eye, by comparing the size of the eye socket (orbit) to the length of the lower jaw. In <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i>, this ratio is 0.27: the eye is about ¼ the length of the lower jaw; <i>Palvennia</i> has an orbital ratio of 0.32, about ⅓ the length of the lower jaw.
<h1>And finally</h1>
This has been a brief overview of the ichthyosaurs themselves. The article (Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i> 2012) shows the images which I’ve used to illustrate, and has the full descriptions. There is also a lengthy comparison between <i>Cryopterygius</i> and <i>Palvennia</i> respectively and other ichthyosaurs from the Jurassic and Cretaceous. <i>Cryopterygius</i> is compared most closely to the Russian <i>Undorosaurus</i>, from a similar time, however the authors note that the validity of <i>Undorosaurus</i> is questionable. <i>Palvennia</i> on the other hand shows subtle differences and broad similarities to many coeval ichthyosaurs; the lack of material from behind the skull means that being more conclusive in comparisons is difficult.
<h1>References</h1>
ANGST, D., BUFFETAUT, E., TABOUELLE, J. and TONG, H. 2010. An ichthyosaur skull from the Late Jurassic of Svalbard. <i>Bulletin de la Société Géologique de France</i>, <b>181</b>, 453–458.

BAUR, G. 1887. On the morphology and origin of the Ichthyopterygia. <i>The American Naturalist</i>, <b>21</b>, 837–840.

COX, C. B. and SMITH, D. G. 1973. Review of Triassic vertebrate faunas of Svalbard. <i>Geological Magazine</i>, <b>110</b>, 405–418.

DRUCKENMILLER, P. S., HURUM, J. H., KNUTSEN, E. M. and NAKREM, H. A. 2012. Two new ophthalmosaurids (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Agardhfjellet Formation (Upper Jurassic: Volgian/Tithonian), Svalbard, Norway. <i>Norwegian Journal of Geology</i>, <b>92</b>, 311–339.

HULKE, J. W. 1873. Fossil vertebrate remains collected by the Swedish Expeditions to Spitzbergen in 1864 and 1868. <i>Bihang till Kongliga Svenska Vetenskaps-Akademiens Handlingar</i>, <b>1</b>, 1–11.

MAISCH, M. W. and MATZKE, A. T. 2002. The skull of a large Lower Triassic ichthyosaur from Spitzbergen and its implications for the origin of the Ichthyosauria. <i>Lethaia</i>, <b>35</b>, 250–256.

—— and —— 2003. Observations on Triassic ichthyosaurs. Part XII. A new Early Triassic ichthyosaur genus from Spitzbergen. <i>Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie—Abhandlungen</i>, <b>229</b>, 317–338.

MAZIN, J.-M. 1981. <i>Grippia longirostris</i> Wiman, 1929, un Ichthyopterygia primitif du Trias inférieur du Spitsberg. <i>Bulletin de la Muséum National de Histoire Natural, Paris, Quartiéme Série</i>, <b>3</b>, 317–348.

—— 1983. <i>Omphalosaurus nisseri</i> (Wiman, 1910), un ichthyoptérygien à denture broyeuse du Trias moyen du Spitsberg. <i>Bulletin de la Muséum National de Histoire Natural, Paris, Quartiéme Série</i>, <b>5</b>, 243–263.

MCGOWAN, C. 1976. The description and phenetic relationships of a new ichthyosaur genus from the Upper Jurassic of England. <i>Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</i>, <b>13</b>, 668–683.

MERRIAM, J. C. 1911. Notes on the relationships of the marine saurian fauna described from the Triassic of Spitzbergen by Wiman. <i>University of California, Bulletin of the Department of Geology</i>, <b>6</b>, 317–327.

SANDER, P. M. 1992. <i>Cymbospondylus</i> (Shastasauridae, Ichthyosauria) from the Middle Triassic of Spitsbergen: filling a paleobiogeographic gap. <i>Journal of Paleontology</i>, <b>66</b>, 332–337.

—— 1998. New finds of <i>Omphalosaurus</i> and a review of Triassic ichthyosaur paleobiogeography. <i>Paläontologische Zeitschrift</i>.

WIMAN, C. 1910. Ichthyosaurier aus der Trias Spitzbergens. <i>Bulletin of the Geological Institute of Upsala</i>, <b>10</b>, 124–148.

—— 1929. Eine neue marine Reptilien-Ordnung aus der Trias Spitzbergens. <i>Bulletin of the Geological Institute of Upsala</i>, <b>22</b>, 1–14.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Aubrey Roberts]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>aubreyjr@student.bio.uio.no</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Great stuff!]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>174</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Bjorn Funke]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>bjorn_funke@hotmail.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Fantastic finds and professional preparations and restorations! Much done by volunteers.]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>2012 in review</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/12/31/2012-in-review/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 31 Dec 2012 19:07:10 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=329</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Here is a review, part one of the year. It was conveniently prepared by Wordpress.com, hence it looks so pretty and shiny and has appeared this year. These are the benchmarks, lets try and smash them over the next twelve months.

The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.

<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/annual-report/"><img alt="" src="http://www.wordpress.com/wp-content/mu-plugins/annual-reports/img/2012-emailteaser.png" width="100%" /></a>

Here's an excerpt:
<blockquote>600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about <strong>7,100</strong> views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 12 years to get that many views.</blockquote>
<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/annual-report/">Click here to see the complete report.</a>]]></content:encoded>
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<item>
  <title>If you go down to the Triassic today...</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/if-you-go-down-to-the-triassic-today/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 17 Jan 2013 12:58:11 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=335</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[(Well last week actually.)

[caption id="attachment_336" align="alignright" width="281"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/08_ichthyosaurus-2-final.jpg"><img class="size-medium wp-image-336" alt="Thalattoarchon saurophagis looking big mean and ichthyosaurian. Here it’s chasing a smaller mixosaur (e.g. Phalarodon) which has been found nearby. Artwork by Raul Martin." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/08_ichthyosaurus-2-final.jpg?w=281" width="281" height="300" /></a> Thalattoarchon saurophagis looking big mean and ichthyosaurian. Here it’s chasing a smaller mixosaur (e.g. Phalarodon) which has been found nearby. Artwork by Raul Martin.[/caption]

You’re in for a BIG surprise! We may only be in the third week of 2013, but already there’s some exciting news on the ichthyosaur horizons. Last Monday (7 January 2013) came the exciting news of a new macro predator; because adding ‘big’ to the front of ‘predator’ just makes it more awesome.

So what have we got here. The name pretty much says it all: <i>Thalattoarchon saurophagis</i>, the ‘reptile eating ocean ruler’ (Fröbisch <i>et al.</i> 2013), it doesn’t run off the tongue, but a little skip isn’t too bad.What we have here is a big and mean beast that could probably have eating most of the animals around it. There are several reasons why this find is odd and important: first, how is different to other ichthyosaurs?
<h1>Om nom nom</h1>
<a title="Thalattoarchon – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thalattoarchon" target="_blank"><i>Thalattoarchon</i></a> is a big ichthyosaur, estimated to be at least 8.6 m. This is a similar size to the Late <a class="zem_slink" title="Triassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Triassic</a> <a title="Cymbospondylus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cymbospondylus" target="_blank"><i>Cymbospondylus</i></a> and as big as the largest <a title="Temnodontosaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temnodontosaurus" target="_blank"><i>Temnodontosaurus</i></a> from the Early Jurassic. (It does pale in comparison to the largest <a title="Shastasaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shastasaurus" target="_blank"><i>Shastasaurus</i></a> [~22 m], but they’re likely in completely different ecologies.) <i>Thalattoarchon</i> has a skull that is around twice the size of a similarly sized <i>Cymbospondylus</i>, and the skull is the real business end.

In the mouth you find many teeth. With Jurassic ichthyosaurs, I’m used to dealing with teeth that are a few centimetres long, about one centimetre across and very smooth all over. <i>Thalattoarchon </i>had big teeth, more than 12 cm for the largest, and these weren’t smooth; they were equipped (in life) with a pair of sharp slicing edges. This condition is called bicarinate, literally ‘two-keeled’. It’s found in a few groups, such as in the crocodilian <a title="Rimasuchus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rimasuchus" target="_blank"><i>Rimasuchus</i></a>, and the mosasaur <a title="Hainosaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hainosaurus" target="_blank"><i>Hainosaurus</i></a>, but infrequent in ichthyosaurs. Some examples of <i>Temnodontosaurus platyodon</i> have them as does the enigmatic <i><a class="zem_slink" title="Shonisaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shonisaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Himalayasaurus</a> tibetensis</i>. The shape of the teeth puts it in the ‘cut’ group of Massare (1987).
<h1>Macro, sch-macro…</h1>
So what’s so special about this beast, other than it’s a large, predatory ichthyosaur with big cutting teeth? Really, you need more than that?

Besides being a macropredator, <i>Thalattoarchon saurophagis</i> has the distinction of being one of, if not the, earliest macropredatory tetrapods in the oceans. Tetrapods are vertebrates that have four limbs, a group made up of amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals, plus a few others. This notably excludes the fish, which don’t have limbs, but have many fins instead.

Nowadays, there are two animals that hold the top rung in the oceanic food chain, the Orca or <a title="Killer Whale – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orca" target="_blank">Killer Whale</a> (tetrapod) and <a class="zem_slink" title="Great white shark" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_white_shark" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Great White Shark</a> (fish). In the Cretaceous there were the mosasaur <a title="Tylosaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tylosaurus" target="_blank"><i>Tylosaurus </i></a>(tetrapod) and the ‘bulldog’ fish <a title="Xiphactinus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xiphactinus" target="_blank"><i>Xiphactinus</i></a>. <i>Xiphactinus</i> has been made famous by the ‘fish in a fish’ fossil: a <i>Xiphactinus</i> was killed eating a fish that was too big. The Jurassic had the pliosaurs <a title="Pliosaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pliosaurus" target="_blank"><i>Pliosaurus</i></a> and <a title="Liopleurodon – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liopleurodon" target="_blank"><i>Liopleurodon </i></a>(both tetrapods), which wasn’t the 25 m in length that <i>Walking with Dinosaurs</i> suggested, although others may have come close. And the Triassic had <i>Thalattoarchon</i>. But what about before then?

Despite there being about 300 million years before <i>Thalattoarchon</i>, and there being tetrapods for ~100 Ma of that, the main threat in the oceans then were big fishes. The meanest looking was <a title="Dukleosteus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunkleosteus" target="_blank"><i>Dunkleosteus</i></a>, not just because it was up to 10 m long, but also it’s head was covered in thick bony plates, and its mouth full of slicing bony plates too. The Devonian (419–358 Ma) is famous for its placoderms, to which <i>Dunkleosteus</i> belongs, the armoured fishes that specialised in bony defence across their bodies.
<h1>All change at the top</h1>
The appearance of <i>Thalattoarchon saurophagis</i> marks a change from the fish-tipped Palaeozoic food webs to the Mesozoic and Cenozoic (including today) tetrapod-dominated oceans. The end of the Permian (252 Ma) was marked by the largest mass extinction known; a frequently quoted figure is 95% of life in the oceans died out. <i>Thalattoarchon </i>is from rocks deposited at least 244 Ma, within 8 Ma of the Permian–Triassic boundary, and only 4 Ma from the earliest known ichthyosaurs (<em><a class="zem_slink" title="Thaisaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thaisaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Thaisaurus</a></em> and <em><a title="Utatsusaurus – Wikipedia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utatsusaurus" target="_blank">Utatsusaurus</a></em>; Shikama, Kamei and Murata 1978; Mazin <i>et al.</i> 1991; Nicholls and Brinkman 1993). This is a very rapid diversification to occupy these vacant niches. The Triassic in general was an exciting for all marine animals to spread and colonise new areas, the weirdness of early sauropterygians is a good example.
<h1>References</h1>
<a title="Macropredatory ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic and the origin of modern trophic networks" href="http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/01/02/1216750110" target="_blank">FRÖBISCH, N. B., FRÖBISCH, J., SANDER, P. M., SCHMITZ, L. and RIEPPEL, O. C. 2013. Macropredatory ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic and the origin of modern trophic networks. <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i>, 1–5.</a>

<a title="Tooth morphology and prey preference of Mesozoic marine reptiles" href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/4523132" target="_blank">MASSARE, J. A. 1987. Tooth morphology and prey preference of Mesozoic marine reptiles. <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>7</b>, 121–137.</a>

MAZIN, J.-M., SUTEETHORN, V., BUFFETAUT, E., JAEGER, J.-J. and ELMCKE-INGAVAT, R. 1991. Preliminary description of <i>Thaisaurus chonglakmanii</i> n. g., n. sp., a new ichthyopterygian (<a class="zem_slink" title="Reptile" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reptile" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Reptilia</a>) from the Early Triassic of Thailand. <i>Comptes rendus de l'Académie des sciences. Série 2, Mécanique, Physique, Chimie, Sciences de l'univers, Sciences de la Terre</i>, <b>313</b>, 1207–1212.

<a title="A new specimen of Utatsusaurus (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Lower Triassic Sulphur Mountain Formation of British Columbia" href="http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/e93-037" target="_blank">NICHOLLS, E. L. and BRINKMAN, D. B. 1993. A new specimen of <em>Utatsusaurus</em> (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Lower Triassic Sulphur Mountain Formation of British Columbia. <i>Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</i>, <b>30</b>, 486–490.</a>

SHIKAMA, T., KAMEI, T. and MURATA, M. 1978. Early Triassic Ichthyosaurus, <i>Utatsusaurus hataii</i> gen. et sp. nov., from the Kitakami Massif, Northeast Japan. <i>Science Reports of Tohoku Univeristy, Second Series (Geology)</i>, <b>48</b>, 77–97.

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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Earliest amphibian moved like a seal | Dear Kitty. Some blog]]></wp:comment_author>
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  <title>A plethora of ichthyosaurs</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/17/a-plethora-of-ichthyosaurs/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 17 Jan 2013 17:26:02 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[If you've followed <a title="dinosaurpalaeo blog" href="http://dinosaurpalaeo.wordpress.com" target="_blank">dinosaurpalaeo</a> like I have, you'll have seen Heinrich Mallison's continuing series on the palaeontology of SW Germany. The <a title="dinosaurpalaeo– Palaeontology of SW Germany 3.1.11: Hauff ichthyosaurs" href="http://dinosaurpalaeo.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/palaeontology-of-sw-germany-3-1-11-hauff-ichthyosaurs/" target="_blank">latest instalment</a>, published last week, features the <a class="zem_slink" title="Ichthyosaur" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichthyosaur" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">ichthyosaurs</a> of the <a class="zem_slink" title="Posidonia Shale" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posidonia_Shale" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Posidonienschiefer</a>, as held in the Hauff Museum, <a class="zem_slink" title="Holzmaden" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holzmaden" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Holzmaden</a>, Germany. These are some of the best preserved ichthyosaurs in the world, and Heinrich's photos are excellent. It's well worth a look.

[caption id="attachment_341" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://dinosaurpalaeo.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/palaeontology-of-sw-germany-3-1-11-hauff-ichthyosaurs/"><img class="size-large wp-image-341" alt="Stenopterygius quadriscissus from the Posidonienschiefer of Southwest Germany. This is a young individual, but exquisitely preserved: all elements in articulation and a preservation of the body outline. Photograph by Heinrich Mallison." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/hauff_56.jpg?w=584" width="584" height="184" /></a> <em>Stenopterygius quadriscissus</em> from the Posidonienschiefer of Southwest Germany. This is a young individual, but exquisitely preserved: all elements in articulation and a preservation of the body outline. Photograph by Heinrich Mallison.[/caption]

Also, for those who remember, I promised a review of last year in my life and ichthyosaurology. This is in the works, but there was a lot of news and research to look at. All that I can say is: watch this space!

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  <title>The ichthyosaurian roundup of last year</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/01/23/the-ichthyosaurian-roundup-of-last-year/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 23 Jan 2013 12:58:52 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Twenty-twelve was a big year for ichthyosaurology. For me, it was my first full academic and calendar years as a PhD student at the University of Bristol studying ichthyosaurs. It also marks the 15<sup>th</sup> month of this blog’s existence and this will be the 35<sup>th</sup> post. That averages to more than one each month, which pleases me as there have been many occasions when I didn’t feel that I’ve lived up to my promises. Not that this means that I have.

So what about now? As this will be one of the first posts of 2013, why not cover some of my, and (mostly) others, work from the past year, as well as my plans for the next. Prepare to be dazzled!
<h1>Ichthyosaurs in 2012</h1>
The so-called ‘ichthyosaur renaissance’ is continuing in full swing with many people working on many exciting things. Last year saw new specimens unearthed and described, and at least five new species and three new genera named officially: <i><a title="Wikipedia – Acamptonectes" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acamptonectes" target="_blank">Acamptonectes</a> densus </i>(Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2012), <i><a class="zem_slink" title="Stenopterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stenopterygius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Stenopterygius</a> aaleniensis</i> (Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012), <i><a title="Wikipedia – Temnodontosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temnodontosaurus" target="_blank">Temnodontosaurus</a> azerguensis</i> (Martin <i>et al.</i> 2012), <i><a title="Wikipedia – Cryopterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cryopterygius" target="_blank">Cryopterygius</a> kristiansenae</i> and <i><a title="Wikipedia – Palvennia" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palvennia" target="_blank">Palvennia</a> hoybergeti</i> (Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i> 2012). From all the research that came out last year, here’s a few pieces on some of the findings.
<h2><i>Stenopterygius</i> galore</h2>
January was a bumper month, and great way to start the year. Erin Maxwell (2012<i>a</i>, <i>b</i>) published studies on the genus <i>Stenopterygius</i> from the Lower <a class="zem_slink" title="Jurassic" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurassic" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Jurassic</a> Posidonienschiefer (<a class="zem_slink" title="Posidonia Shale" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Posidonia_Shale" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Posidonia Shale</a>) of southwestern Germany. <i>Stenopterygius</i> is certainly the most numerous and probably the most completely known ichthyosaur. Huge amounts of material have been found of this genus and now fill collections in the Museum für Naturkunde, Stuttgart, Urwelt-Museum Hauff in Holzmaden and many others besides. Examples can be seen in Heinrich Mallison's recent post from his <a title="Palaeontology of SW Germany 3.1.11: Hauff ichthyosaurs" href="http://dinosaurpalaeo.wordpress.com/2013/01/12/palaeontology-of-sw-germany-3-1-11-hauff-ichthyosaurs/" target="_blank"><i>Palaeontology of SW Germany </i>series</a>. Having such an excellent record lends itself to detailed studies in the biology of <i>Stenopterygius</i>.
<h3>Species level metrics</h3>
[caption id="attachment_360" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwell2012_stenopterygius_morphospace.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-360" alt="Figure 1. Morphospace plot of Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. This shows the distributions of three species: S. quadriscissus, S. triscissus and S. uniter. Component 1 is related to size and growth. The starred specimens are embryos (to the left) and their mothers (to the right). Circled points are type specimens. (From Maxwell 2012a.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwell2012_stenopterygius_morphospace.png?w=300" width="300" height="231" /></a> Figure 1. Morphospace plot of Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. This shows the distributions of three species: S. quadriscissus, S. triscissus and S. uniter. Component 1 is related to size and growth. The starred specimens are embryos (to the left) and their mothers (to the right). Circled points are type specimens. (From Maxwell 2012a.)[/caption]

Having so much material available frequently leads to an excess of enthusiasm in naming species, as has happened so often in ichthyosaurs. Maisch (2008) cleaned up the taxonomy of <i>Stenopterygius</i> into three species: <i>S. quadriscissus</i>, <i>S. triscissus</i> and <i>S. uniter</i> along with the erection of <i><a title="Wikipedia – Hauffiopteryx" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hauffiopteryx" target="_blank">Hauffiopteryx</a> typicus</i>. The differences between these species are there, but are often subtle and depend frequently on the preservation – as in so many fossils. Using morphometrics – statistical variation in shape – Maxwell (2012<i>a</i>) showed that each species clearly occupies their own separate morphospace: each species is morphologically different (fig. 1). The area each species occupies on this graph also shows the variation within the species. <i>S. quadriscissus</i> is by far the most common and, as expected, shows the greatest variation, whereas <i>S. triscissus</i> and <i>S. uniter</i> don’t show as much. The effect of growth from juveniles to adults can also be seen: the four stars in the <i>S. quadriscissus</i> space mark two specimens of associated adults and juveniles. The large difference along the <i>x</i>-axis shows that size (mostly body length) dominates this variation, but that other changes (<i>y</i>-axis and other components) change noticeably too.
<h3><a class="zem_slink" title="Aalenian" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aalenian" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Aalenian</a> treat</h3>
[caption id="attachment_352" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-352" alt="Figure 2. Stenopterygius aaleniensis from the Aalenian of southwestern Germany. this shows the unusual preservation where the body is largely seen side-on, but the head and shoulders are face-on. A is the type specimen and B an interpretative drawing. (From Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/maxwelletal2012_stenopterygius_aaleniensis.png?w=300" width="300" height="167" /></a> Figure 2. Stenopterygius aaleniensis from the Aalenian of southwestern Germany. this shows the unusual preservation where the body is largely seen side-on, but the head and shoulders are face-on. A is the type specimen and B an interpretative drawing. (From Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012.)[/caption]

The Middle Jurassic (Aalenian–Callovian; 174–163 Ma) is largely devoid of ichthyosaur fossils worldwide. The Late Callovian <a class="zem_slink" title="Oxford Clay Formation" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oxford_Clay_Formation" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Oxford Clay formation</a> is full of <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i> and ichthyosaurs from the Bajocian–Bathonian (170–166 Ma) of South America are known (Fernández 1994, 1999). <i>Stenopterygius aaleniensis</i> (the ‘Aalenian <i>Stenopterygius</i>’) (Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012) is the first conclusive remains from the Aalenian (174–168 Ma), not just of an ichthyosaur, but also of a marine reptile generally (i.e. plesiosaurs, pliosaurs and crocodiles too). This newly described specimen (fig. 2) is found in a similar area to those from the Posidonienschiefer, albeit in higher strata. The three-dimensional specimen has its head stuck out at a completely different angle to the rest of its body, giving a good all-around view; very important in ichthyosaur taxonomy, but made it difficult to incorporate in the two-dimensional morphometric study of the Posidonienschiefer <i>Stenopterygius</i> (Maxwell 2012<i>a</i>).
<h2><a class="zem_slink" title="Cretaceous" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cretaceous" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Cretaceous</a> ichthyosaurs … “the Empire strikes back?”</h2>
That is the second part of the brilliantly titled article by Zammit (2012) looking at the diversity of ichthyosaurs in the Cretaceous. For a long time, there was only one genus – <i><a class="zem_slink" title="Platypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Platypterygius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Platypterygius</a></i> – to which almost all Cretaceous ichthyosaurs were assigned. <i>Platypterygius</i> currently contains seven or eight species because of this, although more have come and gone in the past. This is no longer the case: <i>Platypterygius</i> still dominates the diversity, and is in need of the same type of revision that <i>Stenopterygius</i> went through recently (Maisch 2008). However, now there are numerous other genera to accompany it.

This process began relatively recently, with the finding of <i><a title="Wikipedia – Caypullisaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caypullisaurus" target="_blank">Caypullisaurus</a> bonapartei</i> (Fernández 2001, 2007) and more recent reports have increased that with <i><a title="Wikipedia – Maiaspondylus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maiaspondylus" target="_blank">Maiaspondylus</a> lindoei</i> (Maxwell and Caldwell 2006<i>b</i>), <i><a title="Wikipedia – Athabascasaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Athabascasaurus" target="_blank">Athabascasaurus</a> bitumineus</i> (Druckenmiller and Maxwell 2010), <i><a title="Wikipedia – Aegirosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aegirosaurus" target="_blank">Aegirosaurus</a> leptospondylus?</i> (Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2011<i>a</i>), <i><a title="Wikipedia – Sveltonectes" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sveltonectes" target="_blank">Sveltonectes</a> insolitus</i> (Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2011<i>b</i>) and <i>Acamptonectes densus</i> (Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2012). Along the way material and descriptions of <i>Platypterygius</i> have also been reviewed and revised (e.g. Fernández and Aguirre-Urreta 2005; Maxwell and Caldwell 2006<i>a</i>; Kolb and Sander 2009; Maxwell and Kear 2010; Adams and Fiorillo 2011; Fischer 2011; Pardo-Pérez <i>et al.</i> 2012).

[caption id="attachment_348" align="alignright" width="224"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-348" alt="Figure 3. Extinction rates and clade generation rates of ophthalmosaurids (an ichthyosaur subgroup) through the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. The low extinction rates show continuation of taxa across the Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary (orange). In this data there are no new clades (groups) arising after the Late Jurassic. (From Fischer et al. 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/fischeretal2012_ophthalmosaurid_jcb_survival.png?w=224" width="224" height="300" /></a> Figure 3. Extinction rates and clade generation rates of ophthalmosaurids (an ichthyosaur subgroup) through the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous. The low extinction rates show continuation of taxa across the Jurassic/Cretaceous boundary (orange). In this data there are no new clades (groups) arising after the Late Jurassic. (From Fischer et al. 2012.)[/caption]

Fischer <i>et al.</i> (2012) discussed the effect of this more recently realised diversity. Their elegantly simple graphs (fig. 3) show that there is low to no extinction in ichthyosaur species over the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary (145 Ma). It’s also apparent that no new clades arose following the Kimmeridgian/Tithonian either. This implies one or two scenarios:
<ul>
	<li>Late Jurassic and Cretaceous ichthyosaur lineages had extremely long lifespans.</li>
	<li>The lineage and diversity data is incomplete, either due to incorrect assignment of species (lumping many together) or through incomplete sampling (no one’s bothered to look for any).</li>
</ul>
The latter of these is mentioned in the body text (Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2012, p. 22), with particular reference to the ‘wastebasket’ nature of <i>Platypterygius</i> and the poor rock record of the earliest Cretaceous. However, the conclusion remains: ichthyosaurs show stability in their diversity over the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary and through the earliest Cretaceous. The age-old question of why they became extinct towards the end of the Cenomanian (94 Ma) stands.
<h2>A few new specimens</h2>
Along with <i>Stenopterygius aaleniensis</i> mentioned above, a few more ichthyosaurs took their turn in the spotlight. These add to our knowledge about the occurrences and biology these groups and the ecology they belonged to.
<h3>Lower Jurassic</h3>
[caption id="attachment_346" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-346" alt="Figure 4. A new specimen of Ichthyosaurus communis from the Pliensbachian of Charmouth. this is the youngest I. communis known and also shows gut contents. (From Bennett et al. 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/bennettetal2012_new_ichthyosaurus.png?w=300" width="300" height="120" /></a> Figure 4. A new specimen of Ichthyosaurus communis from the Pliensbachian of Charmouth. this is the youngest I. communis known and also shows gut contents. (From Bennett et al. 2012.)[/caption]

<i><a class="zem_slink" title="Ichthyosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichthyosaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Ichthyosaurus communis</a></i> finds are common along the coast between Lyme Regis and Charmouth (Dorset, UK); at least common for ichthyosaur finds. The preservation of the material can be spectacular – close to that seen in the Posidonienschiefer – but all too often it falls short. A specimen described by Bennett <i>et al.</i> (2012) does look a bit of a mess (fig. 4), but it’s still an informative mess! This specimen contains enough detail to be assigned to <i>I. communis</i>, making this the youngest definite example of that taxon. It was found in Pliensbachian age (191–183 Ma) rocks, whereas <i>I. communis</i> was previously known only from the Rhaetian–Sinemurian ages (208–191 Ma). There are also a number of fish remains preserved in the gullet region giving a glimpse of this ichthyosaur’s lifestyle.

[caption id="attachment_350" align="alignright" width="208"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-350" alt="Figure 5. Temnodontosaurus azerguensis from the Toarcian of France. This large ichthyosaur is odd as there are no teeth associated with it, other Temnodontosaurus are well known for having big teeth. (From Martin et al. 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/martinetal2012_temnodontosaurus_azerguensis.png?w=208" width="208" height="300" /></a> Figure 5. Temnodontosaurus azerguensis from the Toarcian of France. This large ichthyosaur is odd as there are no teeth associated with it, other Temnodontosaurus are well known for having big teeth. (From Martin et al. 2012.)[/caption]

The new species <i>Temnodontosaurus azerguensis </i>was named based on material from the Toarcian (183–174 Ma) of France (Martin <i>et al.</i> 2012). Again, this is another impressive specimen, for its preservation and its size, at the best part of 8 m long (fig. 5). The Toarcian is the age in which the Posidonienschiefer was deposited, making this specimen about, but slightly younger than the – three of the four – <i>Stenopterygius</i> discussed above. As <i>Temnodontosaurus</i> go, <i>T. azerguensis</i> is weird – which seems to be the fad for new ichthyosaurs nowadays: weird is good. There were no teeth found with the specimen and the snout is long and thin and with reduced dental grooves. This compares with the “large size … and massive dentition” (Martin <i>et al.</i> 2012, p. 1002) usually associated with <i>Temnodontosaurus</i>. Being from later in the Toarcian also means this ichthyosaur is from after the Toarcian Oceanic Anoxic Event. This ‘stagnation’ of the ocean occurs as oxygen levels in the ocean fall; fish and invertebrates then die and there is a bloom in decay bacteria, which then causes a further reduction in oxygen levels. An event like this leaves its trace in black, organic-rich strata, like the Posidonienschiefer. Few ichthyosaur remains are known from this time; whether this new species marks a post-event radiation cannot be determined.

[caption id="attachment_349" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-349" alt="Figure 6. An embryo of Leptonectes from Somerset. Young are often identifiable by their large eyes. Several of the embryo’s bones are scattered, and there are vertebrae from the associated adult too. (From Lomax and Massare 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/lomaxmassare2012_leptonectes_embryo.png?w=300" width="300" height="224" /></a> Figure 6. An embryo of Leptonectes from Somerset. Young are often identifiable by their large eyes. Several of the embryo’s bones are scattered, and there are vertebrae from the associated adult too. (From Lomax and Massare 2012.)[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_355" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-355 " alt="Figure 7. A famous Stenopterygius specimen. This is usually interpreted as an adult with a juvenile in the process of being birthed: ichthyosaurs gave birth to live young, as with modern mammals. It is this, among other things, that likely allowed them to become so highly adapted to their marine lifestye. (From Organ et al. 2009.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/organetal2012_stenopterygius_quadriscissus_birth.png?w=300" width="300" height="96" /></a> Figure 7. A famous Stenopterygius specimen. This is usually interpreted as an adult with a juvenile in the process of being birthed: ichthyosaurs gave birth to live young, as with modern mammals. It is this, among other things, that likely allowed them to become so highly adapted to their marine lifestye. (From Organ et al. 2009.)[/caption]

While it may not be a new species, coverage of a <a title="Wikipedia – Leptonectes" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leptonectes" target="_blank"><i>Leptonectes</i></a> with associated embryos is still exciting (Lomax and Massare 2012) (fig. 6). This was much closer to (my) home, being found only in Street (Somerset, UK), however the specimen is housed in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge; a little further a travel. Embryos have been known in ichthyosaurs for a long time (see this famous <i>Stenopterygius </i>(fig. 7)), but this is the first occurrence in <i>Leptonectes</i>.
<h3>Upper Jurassic</h3>
The Upper Jurassic had a boost in attention towards the end of this year. I’ve covered the discovery of <i>Cryopterygius kristiansenae</i> and <i>Palvennia hoybergeti</i> in a post last year (Druckenmiller <i>et al.</i> 2012; ‘In the land of Svalbard…’). Also published was a description of some new material of <i>Arthropterygius</i> sp. from Argentina. Curiously, <a title="Wikipedia – Arthropterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthropterygius" target="_blank"><i>Arthropterygius</i></a> was only previously known from Canada (Maxwell 2010) – several thousand miles away today, and not much less in the Jurassic. As shocking as this may seem, it isn’t unheard of: examples of <a title="Wikipedia – Ophthalmosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophthalmosaurus" target="_blank"><i>Ophthalmosaurus</i></a> are known the (western) world over; from England (Seeley 1874; Kirton 1983), Mexico (Buchy 2010) and Argentina (as <i>Ancanamunia</i>; Rusconi 1948; Kirton 1983; Fernández and Maxwell 2012). Modern <a title="Wikipedia – Grey Whale" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gray_whale" target="_blank">Grey Whales</a> also travel great distances – from their tropical birthing grounds towards the Arctic for feeding.
<h3>Palaeobiology</h3>
[caption id="attachment_358" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/rothschildatal2012_decompression_leptonectes.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-358" alt="Figure 8. The effects of ‘the bends’ can be seen in the bones of this Leptonectes tenuirostris. The bone cells are killed, and the stricture weakened, which causes failure when the bone is loaded. the shaft of the arrow is 40 mm. (From Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/rothschildatal2012_decompression_leptonectes.png?w=300" width="300" height="229" /></a> Figure 8. The effects of ‘the bends’ can be seen in the bones of this Leptonectes tenuirostris. The bone cells are killed, and the stricture weakened, which causes failure when the bone is loaded. the shaft of the arrow is 40 mm. (From Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin 2012.)[/caption]

Besides naming new ichthyosaurs, a few papers discussed the palaeobiology of these animals both during life and after death. Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin (2012) looked at <a title="Wikipedia – Decompression sickness" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decompression_sickness" target="_blank">decompression syndrome</a> (‘the bends’) in ichthyosaurs from the Triassic in comparison to post-Triassic. Evidence for the bends can be seen in the state of the bones of ichthyosaurs: build-up of nitrogen in the bones blocking blood vessels and killing cells causes deformities (fig. 8). The findings show that Triassic ichthyosaurs – along with <i>Stenopterygius</i> – apparently lived a more sedate life than most of their Jurassic and Cretaceous relatives (see Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin 2012, tbl. 1). The authors suggest several reasons for this increase in the bends in later ichthyosaurs:
<ul>
	<li>Later ichthyosaurs, particularly the thunniform (tuna-shaped) group are more adapted to deep-diving so will be more affected by repeated decompression as they surface to breath (Motani, Rothschild and Wahl 1999).</li>
	<li>Triassic ichthyosaurs dominated the top tiers of the food web whereas Jurassic and Cretaceous ichthyosaurs faced more predation from sharks, pliosaurs and marine crocodiles (Fröbisch <i>et al.</i> 2013).</li>
	<li>Fast-swimming teleost fish evolved in the Late Jurassic and Early Cretaceous, which may have caused more accidental decompression in hunting. This may be associated with a more endothermic (‘warm-blooded’) metabolism (Bernard <i>et al.</i> 2010).</li>
</ul>
Incidentally, it was this article, along with its comments and replies (Hayman 2012; Rothschild 2012) that led to John Tennant at <a title="Green Tea and Velociraptors – Time to write a letter" href="http://fossilsandshit.wordpress.com/2012/07/31/deep-diving-dinosaurs-time-to-write-a-letter/" target="_blank"><i>Green Tea and Velociraptors</i></a> to write a letter.

Nakajima, Houssaye and Endo (2012, accepted and published online) gave more insights on early ichthyosaur biology. This study on <i><a title="Wikipedia – Utatsusaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Utatsusaurus" target="_blank">Utatsusaurus</a> hataii</i> – one of the earliest and most basal ichthyopterygians – looked at the bone structure in the ribs and humeri of two specimens. The results suggest rapid growth and possibly raised metabolic rates: early in their evolution – and so soon after the Permo-Triassic extinction event (within 6–8 Ma) – these ichthyosaurs were already developing the characters that made them successful for 160 Ma. That <i>Utatsusaurus</i> had paddles and a long, finned tail was already known. The high growth and metabolic rates, along with spongy inner bone structure, hints at a pelagic (open ocean) lifestyle and palaeoecology.

[caption id="attachment_357" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reisdorfetal2012_stenopterygius_exploded.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-357" alt="Figure 9. The scattered remains of a Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. Specimens with the bones spread like this are not uncommon. The diffuse substrate and even low-velocity currents are the likely cause of this preservation. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reisdorfetal2012_stenopterygius_exploded.png?w=300" width="300" height="162" /></a> Figure 9. The scattered remains of a Stenopterygius from the Posidonienschiefer. Specimens with the bones spread like this are not uncommon. The diffuse substrate and even low-velocity currents are the likely cause of this preservation. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)[/caption]

To conclude the past year in ichthyosaur research, a look at their taphonomy. This takes us back, as has happened so often this year, to the Posidonienschiefer and exploding carcasses (Reisdorf <i>et al.</i> 2012). In recent years, the phenomenon of exploding whale carcasses has gained several hits, particularly from <i>Inside Natures’ Giants </i>and on YouTube (vid. 1). These incidences have led to the postulation that some of the scattered ichthyosaur remains found could be due to this cause (e.g. Böttcher 1989; Martill 1993; fig. 9). Explosions of carcasses in modern whales tends only to happen when there’s something around to disturb the carcass – frequently a person with a harpoon (vid. 1, fig. 10).

[caption id="attachment_356" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-356" alt="Figure 10. Stills from the above video showing the effect of sticking a pointed stick into a bloated whale. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/reidorfetal2012_exploding_whale_stills.png?w=300" width="300" height="152" /></a> Figure 10. Stills from the above video showing the effect of sticking a pointed stick into a bloated whale. (From Reisdorf et al. 2012.)[/caption]

The carcass itself will tend to sink and – in deep enough water – the pressure will prevent explosion. The alternative mechanism Reisdorf <i>et al.</i> (2012) suggest is the sediments and currents. Slight currents would have been free to move the bones around in the nebulous ‘soupy substrates’ that made up the seabed (Martill 1993). Velocities of only 0.2–0.4 m/s (&lt;1 mph; a very slow walking pace) would’ve be enough to move around the flank and belly ribs and the paddle bones causing such preservation.

<i>[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_naTZWCpj-8]</i>

Conclusions

This concludes my brief (really?) look at the published ichthyosaur research from 2012, but has not been comprehensive for the amount of research, or the summaries themselves. Twenty-thirteen has already seen ichthyosaur articles published (e.g. Fröbisch <i>et al.</i> 2013; Maxwell and Dececchi 2013), preview manuscripts (e.g. Nakajima, Houssaye and Endo 2012) and more that are currently in preparation.
<h1>I know what I did last year</h1>
From other peoples’ work to what I’ve been doing. As I began with, 2012 was my first full (calendar) year in my PhD and a year later I feel I’ve made progress: I’m almost getting to the results stage! My original plans (<a title="My PhD plans: Part 1: a new ichthyosaur" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/" target="_blank">here</a>, <a title="My PhD: Part 2: the ichthyosaurs strike back" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/13/my-phd-part-2-the-ichthyosaurs-strike-back/" target="_blank">here</a> and <a title="My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/" target="_blank">here</a>) have changed somewhat due to feasibility, time and material constraints, but the gist remains the same.
<h2>Taxonomy</h2>
The largest part of this year has been taken up with describing those ichthyosaurs from the Middle and Upper Jurassic. Fortunately, I was awarded several grants from the <a title="Palaeontographical Society homepage" href="http://www.palaeosoc.org/site/home/" target="_blank">Palaeontographical Society</a>, the <a title="Geological Society homepage" href="http://www.geolsoc.org.uk" target="_blank">Geological Society of London</a>, the <a title="Systematics Association homepage" href="http://www.systass.org" target="_blank">Systematics Association</a> and the <a title="Bob Savage Memorial Fund" href="http://palaeo.gly.bris.ac.uk/opportunities-savage.html" target="_blank">Bob Savage Memorial Fund</a>. This money was spent between August and today on visits to various museums. My visit to Leicester received its own post, but I also went to the Hunterian Museum, Glasgow, Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge, University Museum of Natural History, Oxford and the Natural History Museum, London. I still have to visit Peterborough Museum in the coming weeks.

[caption id="attachment_354" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_ophthalmosaurus.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-354" alt="Figure 11. Ophthalmosaurus icenicus in the main hall at the Natural History Museum, London. This specimen is about 5 m long." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_ophthalmosaurus.png?w=300" width="300" height="225" /></a> Figure 11. Ophthalmosaurus icenicus in the main hall at the Natural History Museum, London. This specimen is about 5 m long.[/caption]

All this travelling was, for the most part, in search of as much of the material of <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i> from the Leeds Collections that I could find. I’ve only mentioned these collections briefly and they deserve to have more detail on them: one of my tasks for this year. All this travelling led me to over 300 specimens referred to <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i>, covering every (known) bone in its body (fig. 11).

[caption id="attachment_347" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/camsm_grendelius.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-347" alt="Figure 12. ‘Grendelius’ mordax on display in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge. the lower jaw is about 1.2 m long." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/camsm_grendelius.png?w=300" width="300" height="225" /></a> Figure 12. ‘Grendelius’ mordax on display in the Sedgwick Museum, Cambridge. the lower jaw is about 1.2 m long.[/caption]

In some select places, particularly the Natural History and Sedgwick museums, there were those more elusive treats <a title="Wikipedia – Brachypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachypterygius" target="_blank"><i>Brachypterygius</i></a> and <a title="Wikipedia – Nannopterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nannopterygius" target="_blank"><i>Nannopterygius</i></a>. In Cambridge, I came across the giant skull originally named <i>Grendelius</i> (fig.) and London has the difficult to see skeleton of <i>Nannopterygius</i> (fig.) This last is still causing me access problems due to its position (~6 m up on a wall), but this should hopefully be resolved later this year.

[caption id="attachment_353" align="alignleft" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_nannopterygius.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-353" alt="Figure 13. Nannopterygius enthekiodon, the best photo I could in the Natural History Museum, London. The specimen is about 3 m long." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/nhm_nannopterygius.png?w=300" width="300" height="225" /></a> Figure 13. Nannopterygius enthekiodon, the best photo I could in the Natural History Museum, London. The specimen is about 3 m long.[/caption]

The descriptions of these three ichthyosaurs are largely complete in draft form. The basis was taken from Kirton (1983), as I’ve mentioned before, and I’ve checked and added much to it. Much that now needs to be done revolves around editing this into a manuscript, and writing the introductory and discussion sections.
<h2>Phylogeny</h2>
When I haven’t been doing stuff with ichthyosaurs descriptions, I’ve been working on their relationships. This is continuing as originally planned, and I now have a set of characters and the first stages of a matrix, which is progressing well. The collection, comparing and construction of this has been time consuming because it requires detailed qualitative understanding of the ichthyosaurs themselves (all 101 species, and counting) and the characters themselves. Because the characters I’ve collected are derived from several sources, their purposes and nature can be very different. These wrinkles have to be resolved before any analysis can take place; this is where I am now.
<h2>Other odd jobs</h2>
Much of the studies that I wrote about in ‘<a title="My PhD: Part 3: the return of the ichthyosaurs" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2012/01/05/my-phd-part-3-the-return-of-the-ichthyosaurs/" target="_blank">My PhD: Part 3</a>’ require a complete, robust phylogeny; hence have not been properly started yet. It is also here that some of the greatest changes have happened. I had hoped to use some three-dimensionally preserved ichthyosaur skulls (e.g. those from Caine and Benton 2011), CT scanned, as the basis for a finite element analysis of their jaw mechanics. Unfortunately, due to the complexity of the skulls (50+ elements), the problems of modelling sutures (where these elements meet) and it taking a long time to build these models, it doesn’t seem feasible to do this (yet).

[caption id="attachment_359" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/temnodontosaurus_cfd.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-359" alt="Figure 14. Preliminary fluid dynamics testing. The silhouette is of Temnodontosaurus from Motani (2005)." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/01/temnodontosaurus_cfd.png?w=300" width="300" height="300" /></a> Figure 14. Preliminary fluid dynamics testing. The silhouette is of Temnodontosaurus from Motani (2005).[/caption]

Instead, following the suggestion of one of my supervisors, Emily Rayfield, I’ve been looking at the related modelling of fluids (<a title="Wikipedia – Computational fluid dynamics" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computational_fluid_dynamics" target="_blank">computational fluid dynamics</a>). The idea with this will be to use two-dimensional body silhouettes to look at the efficiency of ichthyosaurs’ motion through the water. This is very much in the designing/planning/guessing stage. I’ve run some preliminary simulations (fig. 14) just to look at how, and if, the model works. Next will be to compare with flume experiments (e.g. Ferry and Lauder 1996) to make the results are realistic. Eventually this can be combined with the phylogeny to see if there are any trends through ichthyosaur evolution.
<h2>Everything else</h2>
Outside of my research, 2012 offered the chance to go to several meetings:
<ul>
	<li><a title="Geological Society – Lyell Meeting 2012" href="https://www.geolsoc.org.uk/en/Events/Past%20Meeting%20Resources/Big%20Palaeontology%20-%20Lyell%20Meeting%202012" target="_blank"><i>Big Palaeontology</i></a> was this year’s Lyell Meeting at the Geological Society (29 March), featuring talks on topics ranging from specimen databases and virtual palaeontology through to fossil code and palaeontology of the Jurassic Coast World Heritage Site.</li>
	<li>The <a title="SVPCA homepage" href="http://www.svpca.org" target="_blank"><i>Symposium of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy</i></a> was held in Oxford (10–15 September), but unfortunately I could only spend a day there.</li>
</ul>
Besides meetings, I also gave a few talks (sorry, these were on my research):
<ul>
	<li>29 November: <i>Large-scale evolutionary trends in ichthyosaurs</i>, departmental presentation; extended for the <a title="WEGA homepage" href="http://www.wega.org.uk" target="_blank">West of England Geologists' Association</a> on 15 January 2013.</li>
</ul>
<h1>Full ahead Cap’n</h1>
So what does the year ahead hold for me? Currently I’ve spent the best part of the last month not writing this blog post, and the last two days writing all 3000+ words of it, which has been good for affirming my ability to write (the amount of editing and making images notwithstanding). As last year had much work on the descriptions of <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i>, <i>Brachypterygius</i> and <i>Nannopterygius</i>, this month I’ve largely put that aside, until after visiting Peterborough. On the other hand, I am in the process of writing a proposal for a <i>Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Memoir</i> I’ve looked at many places to publish, with the criteria of quality, circulation and accessibility (not in that order). PLOS ONE looked promising (thanks to Darren Naish for the suggestion), but unfortunately they just won’t accept monographs (large, complete bodies of work, which this will be). The SVP memoir series offered the best mix of these three criteria; should it be accepted, it will come out in 2014.

I have however picked up on creation the character list and matrix for my phylogeny, looking to complete this within ~two months. So many other things will be born from this and take up so much of the rest of my year – a flurry of projects, as I like to think of it.

With all this work going on and (hopefully) being completed, 2013 is looking like a busy and rewarding year. I am expecting to have my first peer-reviewed publications, first conferences talk(s) and poster(s) and be largely on the way to completing my PhD.

Three years? I can do it in that!

Roll on 2013.
<h1>References</h1>
<a title="Adams and Fiorillo 2011" href="http://palaeo-electronica.org/2011_3/1_adams/index.html" target="_blank">ADAMS, T. L. and FIORILLO, A. R. 2011. <i>Platypterygius</i> Huene, 1922 (Ichthyosauria, Ophthalmosauridae) from the Late Cretaceous of Texas, USA. <i>Palaeontologia Electronica</i>, <b>14</b>, 19A:12 p.</a> 🔓

<a title="Bennett et al 2012" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.pgeola.2011.07.001" target="_blank">BENNETT, S. P., BARRETT, P. M., COLLINSON, M. E., MOORE-FAY, S., DAVIS, P. G. and PALMER, C. P. 2012. A new specimen of <i>Ichthyosaurus communis</i> from Dorset, UK, and its bearing on the stratigraphical range of the species. <i>Proceedings of the Geologists' Association</i>, <b>123</b>, 146–154.</a>

<a title="Bernard et al 2010" href="http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/doi/10.1126/science.1187443" target="_blank">BERNARD, A., LECUYER, C., VINCENT, P., AMIOT, R., BARDET, N., BUFFETAUT, E., CUNY, G., FOUREL, F., MARTINEAU, F., MAZIN, J.-M. and PRIEUR, A. 2010. Regulation of body temperature by some Mesozoic marine reptiles. <i>Science</i>, 328, 1379–1382.</a>

<a title="Böttcher 1989" href="http://www.archive.org/details/stuttgarterbeitr1551989staa" target="_blank">BÖTTCHER, R. 1989. Über die Nahrung eines <i>Leptopterygius</i> (Ichthyosauria, Reptilia) aus dem süddeutschen Posidonienschiefer (Unterer Jura) mit Bemerkungen über den Magen der Ichthyosaurier. <i>Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie)</i>, 155, 1–19. [In German.] </a>🔓

<a title="Buchy 2010" href="http://links.isiglobalnet2.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&amp;SrcAuth=mekentosj&amp;SrcApp=Papers&amp;DestLinkType=FullRecord&amp;DestApp=WOS&amp;KeyUT=000273752700014" target="_blank">BUCHY, M.-C. 2010. First record of <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i> (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Tithonian (Upper Jurassic) of Mexico. <i>Journal of Paleontology</i>, <b>84</b>, 149–155.</a>

<a title="Caine and Benton 2011" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2011.01093.x/abstract" target="_blank">CAINE, H. and BENTON, M. J. 2011. Ichthyosauria from the Upper Lias of Strawberry Bank, England. <i>Palaeontology</i>, <b>54</b>, 1069–1093.</a>

<a title="Druckenmiller and Maxwel 2010" href="http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/E10-028" target="_blank">DRUCKENMILLER, P. S. and MAXWELL, E. E. 2010. A new Lower Cretaceous (lower Albian) ichthyosaur genus from the Clearwater Formation, Alberta, Canada. <i>Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</i>, <b>47</b>, 1037–1053.</a>

<a title="Druckenmiller et al 2012" href="http://www.geologi.no/data/f/0/21/00/9_2401_0/NJG_2_3_2012_17_Druckenmiller_etal_Pr.pdf" target="_blank">—— HURUM, J. H., KNUTSEN, E. M. and NAKREM, H. A. 2012. Two new ophthalmosaurids (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Agardhfjellet Formation (Upper Jurassic: Volgian/Tithonian), Svalbard, Norway. <i>Norwegian Journal of Geology</i>, <b>92</b>, 311–339.</a> 🔓

<a title="Fernández 1994" href="http://books.google.com/books?hl=en&amp;lr=&amp;id=Xeo9pTkWJHsC&amp;oi=fnd&amp;pg=PA291&amp;dq=fernandez+(ichthyosaur)&amp;ots=3w1-FIiUfu&amp;sig=gVuGohWXUENI3YncHq4wmoicntA" target="_blank">FERNÁNDEZ, M. S. 1994. A new long-snouted ichthyosaur from the Early Bajocian of Neuquen Basin (Argentina). <i>Ameghiniana</i>, <b>31</b>, 291–297.</a> 🔓

<a title="Fernández 1999" href="http://jpaleontol.geoscienceworld.org/cgi/content/abstract/73/4/677" target="_blank">—— 1999. A new ichthyosaur from the Los Molles Formation (Early Bajocian), Neuquen Basin, Argentina. <i>Journal of Paleontology</i>, <b>73</b>, 677–681.</a>

<a title="Fernández 2001" href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1671/0272-4634(2001)021%5B0515%3ADOVHOT%5D2.0.CO%3B2" target="_blank">—— 2001. Dorsal or ventral? Homologies of the forefin of <i>Caypullisaurus</i> (Ichthyosauria: Ophthalmosauria). <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>21</b>, 515–520.</a>

<a title="Fernández 2007" href="http://www.jstor.org/stable/4133784" target="_blank">—— 2007. Redescription and phylogenetic position of <i>Caypullisaurus</i> (Ichthyosauria: Ophthalmosauridae). <i>Journal of Paleontology</i>, <b>81</b>, 368–375.</a>

<a title="Fernández and Aguirre-Urreta 2005" href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1671/0272-4634(2005)025%5B0583%3AROPHVH%5D2.0.CO%3B2" target="_blank">—— and AGUIRRE-URRETA, M. B. 2005. Revision of <i>Platypterygius hauthali</i> von Huene, 1927 (Ichthyosauria: Ophthalmosauridae) from the Early Cretaceous of Patagonia, Argentina. <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>25</b>, 583–587.</a>

<a title="Fernández and Maxwell 2012" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.geobios.2012.02.001" target="_blank">—— and MAXWELL, E. E. 2012. The genus <i>Arthropterygius</i> Maxwell (Ichthyosauria: Ophthalmosauridae) in the Late Jurassic of the Neuquén Basin, Argentina. <i>Geobios</i>, <b>45</b>, 535–540.</a>

<a title="Ferry and Lauder 1996" href="http://jeb.biologists.org/content/199/10/2253.short" target="_blank">FERRY, L. and LAUDER, G. 1996. Heterocercal tail function in leopard sharks: a three-dimensional kinematic analysis of two models. <i>Journal of Experimental Biology</i>, <b>199</b>, 2253–2268.</a>

<a title="Fischer 2011" href="http://212.87.19.32/archive/published/app56/app20110007_acc.pdf" target="_blank">FISCHER, V. 2011. New data on the ichthyosaur <i>Platypterygius hercynicus</i> and its implications for the validity of the genus. <i>Acta Palaeontologica Polonica</i>, <b>57</b>, 123–134.</a> 🔓

<a title="Fischer et al 2011a" href="http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0195667110001114" target="_blank">—— CLEMENT, A., GUIOMAR, M. and GODEFROIT, P. 2011<i>a</i>. The first definite record of a Valanginian ichthyosaur and its implications on the evolution of post-Liassic Ichthyosauria. <i>Cretaceous Research</i>, <b>32</b>, 155–163.</a>

<a title="Fischer et al 2011b" href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.2011.595464" target="_blank">—— MASURE, E., ARKHANGELSKY, M. S. and GODEFROIT, P. 2011<i>b</i>. A new Barremian (Early Cretaceous) ichthyosaur from western Russia. <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>31</b>, 1010–1025.</a>

<a title="Fischer et al 2012" href="http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0029234" target="_blank">—— MAISCH, M. W., NAISH, D., KOSMA, R., LISTON, J. J., JOGER, U., KRÜGER, F. J., PÉREZ, J. P., TAINSH, J. and APPLEBY, R. M. 2012. New ophthalmosaurid ichthyosaurs from the European Lower Cretaceous demonstrate extensive ichthyosaur survival across the Jurassic–Cretaceous boundary. <i>PLOS ONE</i>, <b>7</b>, e29234.</a> 🔓

<a title="Fröbisch et al 2013" href="http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2013/01/02/1216750110" target="_blank">FRÖBISCH, N. B., FRÖBISCH, J., SANDER, P. M., SCHMITZ, L. and RIEPPEL, O. C. 2013. Macropredatory ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic and the origin of modern trophic networks. <i>Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences</i>, 1–5.</a>

HAYMAN, J. 2012. Deep-diving dinosaurs. <i>Naturwissenschaften</i>, <b>99</b>, 671–672.

KIRTON, A. M. 1983. A review of British Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs. Unpublished PhD Thesis, University of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, 239 pp., 45 figs., 5 pls.

KOLB, C. and SANDER, P. M. 2009. Redescription of the ichthyosaur <i>Platypterygius hercynicus</i> (Kuhn 1946) from the Lower Cretaceous of Salzgitter (Lower Saxony, Germany). <i>Palaeontographica Abteilung A: Paläozoologie—Stratigraphie</i>, <b>288</b>, 151–192.

LOMAX, D. R. and MASSARE, J. A. 2012. The first reported <i>Leptonectes</i> (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) with associated embryos, from Somerset, England. <i>Paludicola</i>, <b>8</b>, 263–276.

MAISCH, M. W. 2008. Revision der Gattung <i>Stenopterygius</i> Jaekel, 1904 emend. von Huene, 1922 (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) aus dem unteren Jura Westeuropas. <i>Palaeodiversity</i>, <b>1</b>, 227–271. [In German.] 🔓

MARTILL, D. M. 1993. Soupy substrates: a medium for the exceptional preservation of ichthyosaurs of the Posidonia Shale (Lower Jurassic) of Germany. <i>Kaupia</i>, <b>2</b>, 77–97.

<a title="Martin et al 2012" href="http://doi.wiley.com/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2012.01159.x" target="_blank">MARTIN, J. E., FISCHER, V., VINCENT, P. and SUAN, G. 2012. A longirostrine <i>Temnodontosaurus</i> (Ichthyosauria) with comments on Early Jurassic ichthyosaur niche partitioning and disparity. <i>Palaeontology</i>, <b>55</b>, 995–1005.</a>

<a title="Maxwell 2010" href="http://www.bioone.org/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.2010.521217" target="_blank">MAXWELL, E. E. 2010. Generic reassignment of an ichthyosaur from the Queen Elizabeth Islands, Northwest Territories, Canada. <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>30</b>, 403–415.</a>

<a title="Maxwell 2012a" href="http://www.psjournals.org/doi/full/10.1666/11-038.1" target="_blank">—— 2012<i>a</i>. New metrics to differentiate species of <i>Stenopterygius</i> (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Lower Jurassic of southwestern Germany. <i>Journal of Paleontology</i>, <b>86</b>, 105–115.</a>

<a title="Maxwell 2012b" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/jez.b.22459/abstract" target="_blank">—— 2012<i>b</i>. Unraveling the influences of soft-tissue flipper development on skeletal variation using an extinct taxon. <i>Journal of Experimental Zoology Part B: Molecular and Developmental Evolution</i>, <b>318B</b>, 545–554.</a>

<a title="Maxwell and Caldwell 2006a" href="http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/abs/10.1139/e06-029" target="_blank">—— and CALDWELL, M. W. 2006<i>a</i>. Evidence for a second species of the ichthyosaur <i>Platypterygius</i> in North America: a new record from the Loon River Formation (Lower Cretaceous) of northwestern Canada. <i>Canadian Journal of Earth Sciences</i>, <b>43</b>, 1291–1295.</a>

<a title="Maxwell and Caldwell 2006b" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1475-4983.2006.00589.x/full" target="_blank">—— and CALDWELL, M. W. 2006<i>b</i>. A new genus of ichthyosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of Western Canada. <i>Palaeontology</i>, <b>49</b>, 1043–1052.</a>

<a title="Maxwell and Dececchi 2013" href="http://www.psjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1666/0094-8373-39.1.123" target="_blank">—— and DECECCHI, T. A. 2013. Ontogenetic and stratigraphic influence on observed phenotypic integration in the limb skeleton of a fossil tetrapod. <i>Paleobiology</i>, <b>39</b>, 123–134.</a>

<a title="Maxwell and Kear 2010" href="http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/02724634.2010.483546" target="_blank">—— and KEAR, B. P. 2010. Postcranial anatomy of <i>Platypterygius americanus</i> (Reptilia: Ichthyosauria) from the Cretaceous of Wyoming. <i>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</i>, <b>30</b>, 1059–1068.</a>

<a title="Maxwell, Fernández and Schoch 2012" href="http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0041692.t001" target="_blank">—— FERNÁNDEZ, M. S. and SCHOCH, R. R. 2012. First diagnostic marine reptile remains from the Aalenian (Middle Jurassic): a new ichthyosaur from southwestern Germany. <i>PLOS ONE</i>, <b>7</b>, e41692.</a> 🔓

<a title="Motani 2005" href="http://www.annualreviews.org/doi/pdf/10.1146/annurev.earth.33.092203.122707" target="_blank">MOTANI, R. 2005. Evolution of fish-shaped reptiles (Reptilia: Ichthyopterygia) in their physical environments and constraints. <i>Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences</i>, <b>33</b>, 395–420.</a>

<a title="Motani, Rothschild and Wahl 1999" href="http://mygeologypage.ucdavis.edu/motani/pdf/Motanietal1999.pdf" target="_blank">—— ROTHSCHILD, B. M. and WAHL, W. R. 1999. Large eyeballs in diving ichthyosaurs. <i>Nature</i>, <b>202</b>, 747.</a>

<a title="Nakajima, Houssaye and Endo 2012" href="http://www.app.pan.pl/article/item/app20120045.html" target="_blank">NAKAJIMA, Y., HOUSSAYE, A. and ENDO, H. 2012. Osteohistology of <i>Utatsusaurus hataii</i> (Reptilia: Ichthyopterygia): implications for early ichthyosaur biology. <i>Acta Palaeontologica Polonica</i>, 1–18.</a> 🔓

<a title="Organ et al 2009" href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature08350" target="_blank">ORGAN, C. L., JANES, D. E., MEADE, A. and PAGEL, M. 2009. Genotypic sex determination enabled adaptive radiations of extinct marine reptiles. <i>Nature</i>, <b>461</b>, 389–392.</a>

<a title="Pardo-Pérez et al 2012" href="http://www.springerlink.com/index/143766631848552q.pdf" target="_blank">PARDO-PÉREZ, J., FREY, E., STINNESBECK, W., FERNÁNDEZ, M. S., RIVAS, L., SALAZAR, C. and LEPPE, M. 2012. An ichthyosaurian forefin from the Lower Cretaceous Zapata Formation of southern Chile: implications for morphological variability within <i>Platypterygius</i>. <i>Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments</i>, <b>92</b>, 287–294.</a>

<a title="Reisdorf et al 2012" href="http://www.springerlink.com/index/10.1007/s12549-011-0067-z" target="_blank">REISDORF, A. G., BUX, R., WYLER, D., BENECKE, M., KLUG, C., MAISCH, M. W., FORNARO, P. and WETZEL, A. 2012. Float, explode or sink: postmortem fate of lung-breathing marine vertebrates. <i>Palaeobiodiversity and Palaeoenvironments</i>, <b>92</b>, 67–81.</a>

<a title="Rothschild 2012" href="http://www.springerlink.com/index/10.1007/s00114-012-0937-x" target="_blank">ROTHSCHILD, B. M. 2012. Perspectives on decompression syndrome and the methodology of science. <i>Naturwissenschaften</i>, <b>99</b>, 673–674.</a>

<a title="Rothschild, Xiaoting and Martin 2012" href="http://www.springerlink.com/index/10.1007/s00114-012-0918-0" target="_blank">—— XIAOTING, Z. and MARTIN, L. D. 2012. Adaptations for marine habitat and the effect of Triassic and Jurassic predator pressure on development of decompression syndrome in ichthyosaurs. <i>Naturwissenschaften</i>, <b>99</b>, 443–448.</a>

RUSCONI, C. 1948. Ictiosaurios del Jurásico de Mendoza. <i>Revista del Museo de Historia Natural de Mendoza</i>, <b>2</b>, 17–162. [In Spanish.]

<a title="Seeley 1874" href="http://jgslegacy.lyellcollection.org/content/30/1-4/696.short" target="_blank">SEELEY, H. G. 1874. On the pectoral arch and fore limb of <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i>, a new ichthyosaurian genus from the Oxford Clay. <i>Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society</i>, <b>30</b>, 696–707.</a>

<a title="Zammit 2012" href="http://www.mdpi.com/2076-3263/2/2/11" target="_blank">ZAMMIT, M. 2012. Cretaceous ichthyosaurs: dwindling diversity, or the Empire strikes back? <i>Geosciences</i>, <b>2</b>, 11–24.</a> 🔓

&nbsp;]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[saurian]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>saurian@live.co.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Agreed - excellent review Ben. Glad to hear you have been giving <i>Ophthalmosaurus</i> some attention. We know where to come now!]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>185</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Darren Naish]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>eotyrannus@gmail.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url>http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/</wp:comment_author_url>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Great review, Ben! Looking forward to the stuff that'll (hopefully) appear this year and beyond...]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ichthyosaurs&#8217; injuries, new study | Dear Kitty. Some blog]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[[&#8230;] The ichthyosaurian roundup of last year [&#8230;]]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Recently in my life</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/03/11/recently-in-my-life/</link>
  <pubDate>Mon, 11 Mar 2013 12:04:05 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=366</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[I haven't posted anything here for a while: second year PhD syndrome has finally kicked in with a heavier work load. Hopefully this should ease a little towards and around easter. "But what am I doing", I hear you cry?

I brief, I've been doing a lot of stuff on <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Ophthalmosaurus" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ophthalmosaurus" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Ophthalmosaurus</a></em> especially; visiting <a class="zem_slink" title="Peterborough Museum and Art Gallery" href="http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=52.57176,-0.2459&amp;spn=0.01,0.01&amp;q=52.57176,-0.2459 (Peterborough%20Museum%20and%20Art%20Gallery)&amp;t=h" target="_blank" rel="geolocation">Peterborough Museum</a> and extending my description etc. I've also looked at using <a class="zem_slink" title="Morphometrics" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morphometrics" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">morphometrics</a> to quantify the disparity in this genus, <em><a class="zem_slink" title="Brachypterygius" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachypterygius" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Brachypterygius</a></em> and others—I even have a poster on that to present today, although this is preliminary work.

[caption id="attachment_367" align="aligncenter" width="300"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/ujichth-pco1-2-new.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-367" alt="Intraspecific variation of humeri in Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs, including Ophthalmosaurus icenicus (red), Brachypterygius extremus (blue), Nannopterygius enthekiodon (green) and LEICT G1.2001.016 (pink)." src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/03/ujichth-pco1-2-new.png?w=300" width="300" height="248" /></a> Intraspecific variation of humeri in Upper Jurassic ichthyosaurs, including <em>Ophthalmosaurus icenicus</em> (red), <em>Brachypterygius extremus</em> (blue), <em>Nannopterygius enthekiodon</em> (green) and LEICT G1.2001.016 <em>Ophthalmosaurus</em> sp. (pink).[/caption]

Elsewhere, my time has been taken up with completing my phylogeny character list and playing in several concerts. On this topic: I'm excited to say that I'll be playing tuba in Mahler's Eighth Symphony, the '<a class="zem_slink" title="Symphony No. 8 (Mahler)" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Symphony_No._8_%28Mahler%29" target="_blank" rel="wikipedia">Symphony of a Thousand</a>', in two weeks, probably the largest piece I'll ever play.

So this is a brief catch-up, just to let you know that I haven't forgotten you. Plans are afoot and gaining momentum. Until next time.]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>220</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[]]></wp:comment_author>
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    <wp:comment_author_IP>109.153.70.18</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2013-03-29 22:59:31</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2013-03-29 22:59:31</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben

I'd just like to say how excellent your blog is. Congratulations and keep up the good work. From a personal point of view I'd be really interested in an article on welsh ichthyosaurs.

All the best

Nick]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_id>213</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>paul.delasalle@ntlworld.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Ben

Can you please elucidate on the parameters used in the poster? I'm intrigued by your reference to LEICT G1.2001.016 Ophthalmosaurus sp. Sounds exciting. A new species from the OC at last or is this from a different epoch?

Your summary of last years developments was epic.

regards

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Certainly, you can see the poster I made up here: http://www.academia.edu/2962647/Intra-_and_interspecific_variation_in_Jurassic_ichthyosaurs

This is only preliminary work, initially to learn the methods and the look at the variation in Ophthalmosaurus; there's still quite a way to go. The figures are based on landmark morphometrics of humeri, as that's what there are the most and best specimens of: six landmarks, 74 semi-landmarks. The distal facets are important, but were only described with semi landmarks because of the different homologies of the facets.

The Ophthalmosaurus sp. was included in Fischer et al. (2012; download free here: http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0029234) and I saw it on my visit to Leicester last year. It's from the Spilsby Sandstone Fm, Tithonian–Berriasian. Unfortunately there isn't much of it, but it is distinctive.

And thanks for the compliment, here's hoping that this year will be as epic, or more so.]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Paul]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>paul.delasalle@ntlworld.com</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Thanks Ben. I believe there is more variation yet in the femurs and proximal rear limb elements of O. icenicus. 

Paul]]></wp:comment_content>
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  <title>Is there really an ichthyosaur renaissance going on?</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/06/15/is-there-really-an-ichthyosaur-renaissance-going-on/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 15 Jun 2013 16:30:06 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=379</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[The phrase ‘ichthyosaur renaissance’ was one that I first heard at the Symposium of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy in <a title="SVPCA Lyme Regis 2011" href="http://svpca.org/years/2011_lyme_regis/" target="_blank">Lyme Regis, 2011</a>. This came from Darren Naish’s talk on Robert Appleby’s ichthyosaur work – part of which, on an odd Cretaceous ichthyosaur from Iraq, has recently been <a title="Malawania article" href="http://rsbl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/9/4/20130021.short" target="_blank">published</a> (Fischer <i>et al.</i> 2013) and <a title="Malawania on Tetrapod Zoology" href="http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/tetrapod-zoology/2013/05/14/malawania-from-iraq/" target="_blank">written about</a> on Darren’s blog <i>Tetrapod Zoology</i> – and I’ve used it many times since. So what does it actually mean?

[caption id="attachment_381" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/2013-06-15-publications1.png"><img class="size-large wp-image-381" alt="Ichthyosaur publications and authors from their first description (Home 1814) through to the present day (halfway through 2013). I should point out that these are only the ones that I know of and are certainly not all. " src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/06/2013-06-15-publications1.png?w=584" width="584" height="438" /></a> Ichthyosaur publications and authors from their first description (Home 1814) through to the present day (halfway through 2013). The basic idea is glently up, flattish then steeply up. I should point out that these are only the ones that I know of and are certainly not all.[/caption]

Many of the large fossil vertebrate groups – ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and dinosaurs among them – have had long histories and many ups and downs. They were first properly recognised and published upon 199, 192 and 189 years ago respectively (Home 1814; De la Beche and Conybeare 1821; Buckland 1824) and immediately captured both geologists’ and the public’s hearts. From this, there was much study, so that by the end of the 19<sup>th</sup> Century the groups were considered ‘complete’ and any new finds would be easily fitted in. All three have a noticeable scarcity of publications between the 1920s through 1960s–70s, especially compared to the large monographs the late 1800s (e.g. Owen 1881).

However, what has happened in the last 30–40 years is that interest has returned to the ichthyosaurs, plesiosaurs and dinosaurs. In ichthyosaurs, where this started can be fairly precisely pinpointed to the period 1965–1975 and the work of Appleby, Mazin, Romer and McGowan in particular. Since then, there has been a sharp rise in the numbers of publications and authors, such that publications on ichthyosaurs are approaching, or may have passed, 600 in total – two-thirds of which were published within the past 45–50 years. Of course, these are only the ones that I known of, and that certainly is not all.

So in answer to the titular question: yes, there is really an ichthyosaur renaissance.

<b>References</b>

BUCKLAND, W. 1824. Notice on the <i>Megalosaurus</i> or great fossil lizard of Stonesfield. <i>Transactions of the Geological Society of London, Second Series</i>, <b>1</b>, 390–396. doi:10.1144/transgslb.1.2.390

DE LA BECHE, H. T. and CONYBEARE, W. D. 1821. Notice of the discovery of a new fossil animal, forming a link between the <i>Ichthyosaurus</i> and crocodile, together with general remarks on the osteology of the <i>Ichthyosaurus</i>. <i>Transactions of the Geological Society of London</i>, <b>s1-5</b>, 559–594. doi:10.1144/transgsla.5.559

FISCHER, V., APPLEBY, R. M., NAISH, D., LISTON, J., RIDING, J. B., BRINDLEY, S. and GODEFROIT, P. 2013. A basal thunnosaurian from Iraq reveals disparate phylogenetic origins for Cretaceous ichthyosaurs. <i>Biology Letters</i>, <b>9</b>, 20130021. doi:10.1073/pnas.1018959108

HOME, E. 1814. Some account of the fossil remains of an animal more nearly allied to fishes than any of the other classes of animals. <i>Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London</i>, <b>104</b>, 571–577. doi:10.1098/rstl.1814.0029

OWEN, R. 1881. A monograph of the fossil Reptilia of the Liassic Formations. Part III. <i>Plesiosaurus</i>, <i>Dimorphodon</i>, and <i>Ichthyosaurus</i>. <i>Monograph of the Palaeontographical Society</i>, <b>17, 23, 35</b>, 1–134, pls. 1–33.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>A dash of new ichthyosaurs</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2013/07/24/a-dash-of-new-ichthyosaurs/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 24 Jul 2013 10:20:19 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[There have been a couple of new ichthyosaurs named in the past month. Both are from the Lower Triassic and so tell us new things about the early evolution of the group.

<em>Gulosaurus helmi</em> is a new grippiid from Canada and <em>Chaohusaurus zhangjiawanensis</em> is a basal ichthyosaurian from China.

<strong>References</strong>

CHEN, X., SANDER, P. M., CHENG, L. and WANG, X. 2013. A new Triassic primitive ichthyosaur from Yuanan, South China. <em>Acta Geologica Sinica</em>, <strong>87</strong>, 672–677.

CUTHBERTSON, R. S., RUSSELL, A. P. and ANDERSON, J. S. 2013. Cranial morphology and relationships of a new grippidian (Ichthyopterygia) from the Vega-Phroso Siltstone Member (Lower Triassic) of British Columbia, Canada. <em>Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology</em>, <strong>33</strong>, 831–847.]]></content:encoded>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Having had a monstrously busy summer, I haven’t been around to write and update this blog much. I have had many exciting adventures, conferences and field trips to enjoy, which have taken to such exotic places as Paris, Edinburgh and Weston-super-Mare.

Just over a week ago, I had a message from WordPress congratulating me on the second anniversary of this blog’s existence. As a reminder, it was quite nice; marking the beginning of my third (and likely final) year and Ph.D. study. It seems that now would also be a good time to put out what I’d like to do with this blog now.

The dearth of posts here has mostly been due to me spending so much time on some quite big pieces of work, which are making their way towards the light of day. In the meantime I want to post further little snippets of things that I find interesting and intriguing; hopefully you will do too.

As for now, I feel this blog needs a slight refresh, and so have decided to change up its themes a little. Although broadly similar to the old look (Twenty Eleven), this new version (Twenty Ten – yes it is an older theme!) has a couple of things I like. Mostly it has a different font set  with a slightly more classical feel to it (serifs and text figures). I find the field of typography interesting, especially the evolution of font families and combinations (nerd!).

But what about topics for the blog? Typography could feature…maybe. As for the ichthyosaurs, I will continue to post about intriguing papers. The pages I’ve set up will be continued and developed: ichthyosaur systematics is part of my current projects, so will be a big input to add for this. Doubtless further ichthyosaurs will be found, described and named, improving the taxonomy page. Biology will feature more too, completing the set.

All of these won’t be an immediate change or excess of posts: this are all things for the next year. Rest assured that I am still around, and that I will continue to work on this blog and spread the joy of ichthyosaurs to the world at large. Stay tuned to continue this fantastical exploration.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Home</title>
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  <pubDate>Mon, 19 Oct 2015 13:11:14 +0000</pubDate>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Hello there, I am Ben and this is my website about the extraordinary world of the ichthyosaurs, palaeontology and whatever I happen to be thinking about when I happen to get around to posting here.

The best place to start is the <a title="Blog" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/blog/">blog</a>, but use the headings above to find out much more.

[caption id="attachment_426" align="aligncenter" width="584"]<a href="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/top_hat_brachypterygius_mordax_brsmg_ce_16696_exhibit1.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-426" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2013/10/top_hat_brachypterygius_mordax_brsmg_ce_16696_exhibit1.jpg?w=584" alt="The ichthyosaur Brachypterygius extremus from the Upper Jurassic of Kimmeridge Bay on the Jurassic Coast of the UK. A few accessories have been added." width="584" height="233" /></a> The ichthyosaur <em>Brachypterygius extremus</em> from the Upper Jurassic of Kimmeridge Bay on the Jurassic Coast of the UK. A few accessories have been added.[/caption]]]></content:encoded>
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<item>
  <title>Where have I been?</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2014/09/02/where-have-i-been/</link>
  <pubDate>Tue, 02 Sep 2014 17:37:13 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[So … hi there. How have things been with you? I’ve been away from this blog for a while, but don’t worry!: I haven’t been idle … not all of the time anyway.

Much of my time over the past 18 months or so has been focused on one single piece of work. This hasn’t been the only thing: I’ve appeared in a couple of talks on phylogeny at SVPCA and Progressive Palaeontology, and by ‘appeared in’ I mean ‘presented’. (I've recently updated my <a title="Academia.edu: Benjamin Moon" href="https://bristol.academia.edu/BenjaminMoon" target="_blank">Academia.edu page</a> with the details of these.) Aside from those, my mind has been fixed on the taxonomy, I’ve written an overview as one of my <a title="My PhD plans: Part 1: a new ichthyosaur" href="http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2011/12/07/my-phd-plans-part-1-a-new-ichthyosaur/" target="_blank">early blog posts</a>. This has now come together to form a monster of a manuscript that I’ve just submitted.

However, the fruits of that work aren’t what I’ll be talking about today. By ‘monster of a manuscript’, I mean some 250 pages of body text, plus many for references, captions, and index: 364 pages in total, and add on the figures and plates themselves too. (Note the Oxford comma there, which I have a new-found fondness for. Yes Mike, I realise that this is hypocritical considering the argument about it that we had last time we met.) This post, therefore, is about <i>how</i> I wrote this, and <i>how</i> I put it all together, or, more specifically, the computer programs that I used to do this. It, this post, may be a bit of a curiosity, but it’s a curiosity that I shall indulge myself in, much like my eventual post on typography (stay tuned!).

For those who can’t wait, or, potentially rightly, expect me to not write about this for a long time, you can find many interesting things on the Web. A <a href="http://xkcd.com/1070/">few</a> of my favourite places to look are <a title="Typographica" href="http://typographica.org" target="_blank">Typographica</a>, <a title="Typophile" href="http://www.typophile.com" target="_blank">Typophile</a>, and, of course, there is <a title="Wikipedia: Typography" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Typography" target="_blank">Wikipedia</a>. Another interesting point is that I wrote this blog post using the type family <a title="Linux Libertine type family" href="http://www.linuxlibertine.org" target="_blank">Linux Libertine</a>. Intended to be a superior replacement for Times New Roman, it succeeds at this very well. It is also free, includes glyphs for both Greek and Cyrillic, which I have used, and comes with compatible serifed (Linux Libertine) and sans-serifed (Linux Biolinum), display, and monospaced fonts.
<h1>Getting the words down</h1>
The first challenge is, of course, getting the words down. This assumes that you know what you’re writing about, and have the ability to do so: while this is typical for academic writings, it may not be the case in writing fiction novels, for example. This, in itself, is a very large can of worms, which I may address some day. Suffice to say: if you are doing a PhD, you’ve probably got this at least somewhat sorted.

My work consisted of lengthy descriptions of several ichthyosaur taxa: going through each bone: describing its shape, what it joins to, and what’s around it. This is simple enough when you have the whole bone in front of you, but less so when it’s only a bit of it, and you’re having to compare it to a photo of another fragment that’s housed in a different museum.

However, that’s not where I’m taking this.

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I dislike <a title="Microsoft Word" href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-GB/word/" target="_blank">Microsoft Word</a>. It works, yes (mostly; ooh! that’s a snide comment right there), but I find it difficult, and it does not work well with the way that I work. Doubtless there are many things I could do to improve my relationship with it; I’ve tried. I prefer <a title="Apple: Pages" href="https://www.apple.com/uk/mac/pages/" target="_blank">Apple Pages</a> as a word processor, but that is quite a bit more limited in extended functions. This is especially true for the most recent version. Maybe more features will be added?, but I’m not sure when or how well. Pages could be great: I found it highly useful for doing my undergraduate reports, essays, and dissertation. It has lost some of its sparkle since then. They both suffer, as I’ve realised since starting to write lengthy, bitty pieces, from being too linear: they excel at starting at the beginning, going towards the end.

Let me clarify. When writing lengthy descriptions, particularly when each section is on a specific bone, I found it helpful, and easier to write by jumping around: a bit here, a bit there, compare that with this, and so on. This was easily accomplished in the software that I used: <a title="Scrivener for Mac" href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php" target="_blank">Scrivener for Mac</a>.

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[caption id="attachment_446" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/scrivener.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-446" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/scrivener.png?w=300" alt="Interface in Scrivener for Mac, showing the Binder on the left, and comments on the right. The writing goes in the middle, here showing two files/sections, separated by the title ‘Scrivener for Mac’. The red colouring shows revisions that I’ve made." width="300" height="147" /></a> Interface in Scrivener for Mac, showing the Binder on the left, and comments on the right. The writing goes in the middle, here showing two files/sections, separated by the title ‘Scrivener for Mac’. The red colouring shows revisions that I’ve made.[/caption]

Scrivener is a series of programs by Literature and Latte, available for Mac, and Windows, with an iOS version in development. It is an excellent workhorse of a writing program, designed for writing substantial works especially, but also good at ‘lighter bites’, like this post.

What I like, and what I found most helpful in my writing, is that individual sections, or chapters, can be separated into their own files <i>ad hoc</i> and <i>ad libitum</i>. The project itself, the program’s term for the whole, is actually a folder, ‘package’ in Mac speak, that contains all of these separate text files, with the ability to add research files, web pages, and other things too. Visible in the binder, these files can be opened in any combination by Scrivener, with side-by-side views, and moved about at will; all controlled, organised, linked, indexed, and referenced by Scrivener. There are more things you can do that might be helpful in certain situations too: index cards, and scriptwriting, among others. As I hinted above: this program is for writers generally, not specifically for academic writing, but it most certainly does not suffer from being a Jack-of-all-trades, as Word does.

Being able to separate descriptions as one bone per file allowed me to focus only on that; useful when some of these descriptions spread to over 1000 words each. Another important feature is targets, which kept me going with something to aim for both for the day, and for the whole project. You can even tweet your progress, should you wish to do so. I didn’t make my original deadline by a long way.

Of course, writing into this software is no different than any other designed for the purpose: keyboard, screen, time, will (not all of these are all present all of the time). However, it is the way in which the program allows you to work <i>with</i> what you’ve written, both during, and afterwards.

As Scrivener keeps each section in a separate file within the project, getting it out at the end requires the document to be ‘compiled’ from all the parts. This post-processing gives control over the look of the output. It might not be important for a single document that’s going to one place, but sometimes you might need to reformat it later. In essence, these compile settings act similar to text styles. They’re applied to both the body text, and to the subdocument headings, as defined. This latter is very useful for a multilevelled document. Numerous other features are available: the instructions are 540 pages long, and made in Scrivener itself.
<h2>Adding authority</h2>
Academic work has several hundred years of history behind it that must not be ignored, but instead must be brought in and included. Referencing the relevant previous work is just another potential headache, after finding and reading it in the first place. When this list of references becomes large, say 420 or so individual publications, help is very much appreciated. (This is the kind of number that many academics will have do deal with when doing their PhD thesis: perhaps the largest work in their careers.) I use two programs: <a title="Papers for Mac" href="http://www.papersapp.com" target="_blank">Papers for Mac</a>, to organise and view documents, and <a title="Bookends for Mac" href="http://www.sonnysoftware.com/bookends/bookends.html" target="_blank">Bookends for Mac</a>, to collect, insert, and format references.

<hr />

[caption id="attachment_443" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-443" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends.png?w=300" alt="The main database interface in Bookends for Mac." width="300" height="220" /></a> The main database interface in Bookends for Mac.[/caption]

Bookends for Mac by Sonny Software contains the best set of import, export, and customisation options for references that I’ve found. I’ve looked at <a title="EndNote" href="http://endnote.com" target="_blank">EndNote</a>, <a title="Sente" href="http://www.thirdstreetsoftware.com/site/SenteForMac.html" target="_blank">Sente</a>, and <a title="Zotero" href="https://www.zotero.org" target="_blank">Zotero</a>, as well as the Citations function of Papers too. (I used to use Paper’s Citations when I used Pages, and wrote the first version of the style format for the journal <i>Palaeontology</i> in the Citation Style Language (http://citationstyles.org), which is used by Papers, Sente, and Zotero.) All of these allow you to change to format of both citations and the bibliography: which bits are included and their order, which are italicised or in bold, and so on. However, as many journals each have their own subtle differences in citation and reference formatting, it becomes difficult to cover all of these. (No reference assistant is perfect or complete, and most will require some tweaking at some stage.) Inevitably, it ends up being the small bits that are left over and have to be changed later: bibliography formatting is inevitably a time-consuming task. I’ve found that Bookends gives me those few more options, which that little less time having to be spent later: a generally more pleasant way to go.

[caption id="attachment_442" align="alignleft" width="255"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends-reference.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-442" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends-reference.png?w=255" alt="Reference input window in Bookends for Mac, slighty modified by me from the defaults, again these are only some of the available options." width="255" height="300" /></a> Reference input window in Bookends for Mac, slighty modified by<br />me from the defaults, again these are only some of the available options.[/caption]

[caption id="attachment_441" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends-format.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-441" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/bookends-format.png?w=300" alt="The formatting window in Bookends for Mac showing some of the available options for inputting and outputting styles." width="300" height="266" /></a> The formatting window in Bookends for Mac showing some of the available options for inputting and outputting styles.[/caption]

Nicely, citations are easy to add with Bookends: simply import a citekey into the file from its database. The formatting stage comes later, by using the program to process the file, taking all the citekeys, formatting the citations, and adding a bibliography. As it is text based, this means that Bookends can work with files from many programs: simply export, format, import. There are also very useful options for showing only the date, or not having brackets around, for instance. I’ve found that doing my formatting in <a title="Mellel" href="http://www.mellel.com" target="_blank">Mellel</a>, which has particularly close ties to Bookends (they are available together in a discounted software bundle), adds a bit extra in formatting control, again saving that little, or more, extra time. While each of these savings may only a second or two for each edit, in such a long document, with several hundred or thousands of citations, that easily adds up.

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[caption id="attachment_445" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/papers.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-445" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/papers.png?w=300" alt="The main window in Papers for Mac, showing the library at the left, inspector at the right, database at the middle top and viewer at the middle bottom. Like Bookends, the inspector has metadata fields that can be filled manually or automatically. PDF files can be browsed like this, or viewed in full screen." width="300" height="197" /></a> The main window in Papers for Mac, showing the library at the left, inspector at the right, database at the middle top and viewer at the middle bottom. Like Bookends, the inspector has metadata fields that can be filled manually or automatically. PDF files can be browsed like this, or viewed in full screen.[/caption]

Papers for Mac by Mekentosj, now part of Springer, is a document manager, primarily for pdfs. Import a pdf file and the software copies it to the library, and, for research articles, will automatically search for titles, authors, source, and other reference metadata. The program then lets you search through the text, view the document, highlight, add notes, and add associated documents. These are all immensely useful: the bread and butter of an academic’s daily work. Papers simply takes markup that was done on paper offprints into digital form. It is not the only such document organiser, <a title="Apple Preview" href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Preview_(Mac_OS)" target="_blank">Preview</a> allows markup, other software organises files. Yet, being able to view, annotate, and organise articles, with the associated metadata, search, and citation tools is hugely useful.
<h1>Finalising for sending off</h1>
My workflow usually goes a little like this: write in Scrivener, export as Rich Text File (.rtf), import into Mellel, format references with Bookends, format paper as needed (this is usually minimal as Scrivener can generally cover all the bases), export as .pdf, preferably, or .doc/.docx to distribute. I needed to add an index, however, and Mellel, unfortunately, doesn’t have this ability. (It’s one of the things that has been requested in the forums, and this has been acknowledged by the developers, so it may appear.) For this, I tried importing into Word, but this struggled with indexing such a large document.

The process itself was simple: create a list of words to index, with how they should appear, make Word mark these in the document, add the index to the end. (I followed the instructions from <a title="Dummies.com: create an index in Word" href="http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/create-an-index-in-word-2011-for-mac.html" target="_blank">Dummies.com</a>.) Word struggled with this, although wasn’t beaten, but made working with the document afterwards difficult: pages appeared to be recalculated on-the-fly, so that’s something else that the program has to do. (I’m not sure whether this is actually how Word does this, but the constant slowness and crashing suggests that it was doing a lot of extra work once the index had been added.) It was too much: Word repeatedly crashed, and became frustratingly slow to use. I searched for an alternative.

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[caption id="attachment_444" align="alignright" width="300"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/nisus-writer-pro.png"><img class="size-medium wp-image-444" src="http://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/nisus-writer-pro.png?w=300" alt="Nisus Writer Pro main window with a text document exported from Scrivener, hence the coloured revisions. The document is viewable as pages, as here, or continuous roll. The expected assortment of tools are present, either as menus, or in a ‘drawer’ at the side of the window (not shown)." width="300" height="233" /></a> Nisus Writer Pro main window with a text document exported from Scrivener, hence the coloured revisions. The document is viewable as pages, as<br />here, or continuous roll. The expected assortment of tools are present,<br />either as menus, or in a ‘drawer’ at<br />the side of the window (not shown).[/caption]

I settled on <a title="Nisus Writer Pro" href="http://nisus.com/pro/" target="_blank">Nisus Writer Pro for Mac</a> by Nisus Software. It has the tools I need and works primarily with .rtf files, how I mostly pass through my writing. Using the trial showed me how useful Nisus Writer Pro is. It can do all the things that I need it to do, and quickly. Processing an index and creating contents does not take long: the compiling takes some time to go through, but the creating takes only seconds. (The process to create the index is the same as in Word.) Both of these are also stored as text to be updated as needed: on demand processing reducing the general overhead. The styles and formatting options are those typically found in word processors, but their implementation, their usability, and the way that they <i>look</i>, not an unimportant thing in my world, are more pleasant than many others. (I am somewhat of an aesthete.) Nisus Writer Pro can, conveniently, read the change tracking on Word documents, as can Mellel, perhaps the final part of working with documents. The realisation of this too is, I think, finer than in Word.
<h1>To finish</h1>
Microsoft Word is a powerhouse of a program, both in terms of functions, and ubiquity. I use it, when necessary. (I have signed up to <a title="Office 365 University" href="http://office.microsoft.com/en-gb/microsoft-office-365-university-FX102918415.aspx" target="_blank">Office 365 University</a>, so get the benefit of the programs and OneDrive.) Yet I am increasing finding that I do not need to.

I use a MacBook Pro, running OS X. I have seen others complain about Word on OS X. I have not used Word on Windows. On that platform, it could be excellent and worth the share that it has garnered. If so, why not also on OS X? I do know that there are things supported by the Windows version that aren’t found in Word for Mac, certain advanced typographical options being the one I know best. These, specifically OpenType feature support, have only recently found their way into any version of Word. I’ll leave for now the discussion of <a title="Why word processors are not typesetting programs." href="http://www.thebookdesigner.com/2010/01/the-trouble-with-word-processors/" target="_blank">word processing versus typesetting programs</a>. Maybe the next version will allay my griefs. For the Mac version of Office, the time of this to appear is nigh.

I do not think that the way I’ve found myself working is bad though. Using several great programs that do what they do well has perhaps served me better than lumbering on with one that I disagree with. My experience has been far from a hardship, even with the program swapping and file manipulation.

I have had occasional problems, but the instructions that come with the programs are extensive, comprehensive, and useful; not all of those are guaranteed! Moreover, the forums (<a title="Scrivener forum" href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/forum/index.php" target="_blank">Scrivener</a>, <a title="Bookends forum" href="https://www.sonnysoftware.com/phpBB3/index.php" target="_blank">Bookends</a>, <a title="Papers support" href="http://support.mekentosj.com" target="_blank">Papers</a>, <a title="Mellel forum" href="http://forum.mellel.com" target="_blank">Mellel</a>, and <a title="Nisus forum" href="http://nisus.com/forum/" target="_blank">Nisus</a>) for each program are very helpful, and I’ve often been able to contact with the people who make these programs themselves.

Other blogs have talked about their experiences with these programs in their own projects. (In particular, I occasionally see posts about Scrivener appear in my <a title="Scrivener on Facebook" href="https://www.facebook.com/pages/Scrivener/126134826351" target="_blank">Facebook feed</a>: I follow them.) I urge you to look them up. Each has a trial option to, so why not try them. Some are cross-platform, and allow collaboration or working with documents as such, across many computers.

I don’t think there are many places to find how academics work. My immediate thought turns to the blog <a href="http://blog.macademic.org"><i>Academic workflows on a Mac</i></a> by Aleh Cherp: on this blog, Aleh has reviews, thoughts, and personal workflows. This is a great place to see how things can work together to get things done. It may not suit everyone, not least because of the differences between research topics and methods. I’m curious whether anyone else has written about this, or what different processes other people use.]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Writing links</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2014/09/03/writing-links/</link>
  <pubDate>Wed, 03 Sep 2014 11:00:00 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">http://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=439</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>In the last post, I detailed a bit about my general writing workflow. I thought it would be useful to summarise the software that I’ve mentioned and give a brief description here, with links.</p><ul><li><a title="Scrivener for Mac" href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php" target="_blank">Scrivener for Mac</a>: basic and simple are the wrong words, but this allows you to focus on writing.</li><li><a title="Bookends for Mac" href="http://www.sonnysoftware.com/bookends/bookends.html" target="_blank">Bookends for Mac</a>: highly customisable and compatible referencing.</li><li><a title="Papers for Mac" href="http://www.papersapp.com" target="_blank">Papers for Mac</a>: organises my papers life.</li><li><a title="Mellel" href="http://www.mellel.com" target="_blank">Mellel</a>: writer with many writing features.</li><li><a title="Nisus Writer Pro" href="http://nisus.com/pro/" target="_blank">Nisus Writer Pro</a>: writer with many writing features.</li></ul><p>Versions for Windows are available for <a title="Scrivener for Windows" href="http://www.literatureandlatte.com/scrivener.php?platform=win" target="_blank">Scrivener</a> and <a title="Papers for Windows" href="http://www.papersapp.com/windows/" target="_blank">Papers</a>.</p><p>And my general workflow: Scrivener + Bookends → Mellel + Bookends → Nisus Writer Pro.</p><p>Also, because I thought it would be fun (I am rather odd), I made this post and the last into a pdf, which you can find here: <a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2014/09/where-have-i-been1.pdf">Where have I been.pdf</a>.</p>]]></content:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_id>354</wp:comment_id>
    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Judith Pardo Pérez]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>paleonatura@gmail.com</wp:comment_author_email>
    <wp:comment_author_url/>
    <wp:comment_author_IP>132.230.169.107</wp:comment_author_IP>
    <wp:comment_date>2014-09-04 11:35:42</wp:comment_date>
    <wp:comment_date_gmt>2014-09-04 10:35:42</wp:comment_date_gmt>
    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Hi Benjamin, very useful post I read it yesterday. I will see how works Scrivener for my next project. I'm very tired of using word, the software almost everyday surprise and interrupt my routine with a new problem. Cheers!]]></wp:comment_content>
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<item>
  <title>Progressive Palaeontology 2015</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2015/04/24/progressive-palaeontology-2015/</link>
  <pubDate>Fri, 24 Apr 2015 16:17:04 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=459</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Dear All…

It's been yet another long while. I put this down to having a thesis to write (and what a thesis!), and conferences, and travelling, and all those other things that I've been complaining about for a long time and will continue to do so … blah blah blah yacketty yacketty.

But this isn't a piece to complain about that. This is about seeing the other side of the conference hand, and fully appreciating the stupendous hard work that others have put in to make these great.

Earlier this month, the University of Bristol Palaeobiology Research Group (to give us our full title) hosted Progressive Palaeontology 2015. This is a student-led conference that attempts to offer a relaxed space for current students to present what they're working on, from any area of palaeontology. After making the, what I subsequently found to be, foolish offer to build the information and abstract booklet, I was roped into the committee alongside Joe Keating (the leader), JJ Hill, Chris Rogers (second-in-command), Mark Puttick, Luke Parry, Max Stockdale, Al Tanner, and Fiona Walker.

We had over 90 people register for the conference, from many institutions, and four countries. The 26 talks and 24 posters covered various topics from Triassic tetrapods to alteration of melanin and fossil colour, muscles in <i>Psittacosaurus</i> to Mesozoic mammal ecology. All talks were excellently given, and showed a huge variety of topics and methodology; great promise in these progressives.

[caption id="attachment_460" align="alignright" width="660"]<a href="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/11146398_10153744852488448_5694720390716190845_o.jpg"><img class="size-large wp-image-460" src="https://ichthyosaurs.files.wordpress.com/2015/04/11146398_10153744852488448_5694720390716190845_o.jpg?w=660" alt="The conference photograph  taken by David Marshall." width="660" height="440" /></a> The conference photograph taken by David Marshall.[/caption]

After the conference, we had an excellent dinner, and held an auction to benefit future travel grants for ProgPal. This was overseen by the inimitable David Button, Esq., who admirably raised the roof, and the price, of artwork, mugs, and slabs of rock; we made over £700 in total, a monument to the generosity of those who were there.

The next day, on the field trip, we visited three excellent localities near Bristol and along the Welsh Marches. With the inimitable David Button, Esq., looking resplendent in his guise as union chief, we took in the Triassic–Jurassic boundary at Aust, finding small fragments that had fallen down the cliffs from the Rhaetian Bone Bed. Next, we went onto the Silurian inlier at Usk to capture various brachiopods, bivalves, and even some trilobite fragments. However, the best find of the day was found after the excellent pie-pub lunch at The Crown Inn. At a Devonian locality in Crasswall, which produced many jawless fish fragments, the very lucky Dave Marshall found a shoulder plate from a large eurypterid; this made Dave a very happy bunny.

So that wraps up a little on what happened over the conference. Besides having the fun of being at the conference, as I have before, it was also enlightening to see how much work goes into the preparation of such. While editing, and chasing after, so many abstracts is not the easiest of jobs, I don’t envy those who had to deal with rooms and catering and stuff.

Progressive Palaeontology is organised with the help of the <a title="Palaeontological Association" href="http://www.palass.org" target="_blank">Palaeontological Association</a>, and funding for this year also came from the <a title="Geological Society of London" href="https://www.geolsoc.org.uk" target="_blank">Geological Society of London</a>. Prizes were donated by <a title="Cambridge University Press" href="http://www.cambridge.org" target="_blank">Cambridge University Press</a> and <a title="Siri Scientific Press" href="http://www.siriscientificpress.co.uk/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">Siri Scientific Press</a>, and <a title="Robert Nicholls" href="http://paleocreations.com" target="_blank">Bob Nicholls</a>, <a title="Luis Rey" href="http://www.luisrey.ndtilda.co.uk" target="_blank">Luis Rey</a>, and <a title="Mark Witton" href="http://www.markwitton.com" target="_blank">Mark Witton</a>. Additionally, the <a title="Paleontological Society" href="http://www.paleosoc.org" target="_blank">Paleontological Society</a> and <a title="Society of Vertebrate Paleontology" href="http://vertpaleo.org" target="_blank">Society of Vertebrate Paleontology</a> donated money towards travel grants. You can find more information about this year, past years, and the next years (when it comes up) at the <a title="Progressive Palaeontology website" href="http://www.palass.org/modules.php?name=propal" target="_blank">ProgPal website</a>.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>459</wp:post_id>
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<item>
  <title>Publications</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/publications/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 03 May 2015 11:24:13 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?page_id=475</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Cleary TJ, <strong>Moon BC</strong>, Dunhill AM, Benton MJ. 2015. The fossil record of ichthyosaurs, completeness metrics, and sampling biases. <em>Palaeontology</em>, <strong>58</strong>(3), 521–536. doi:10.1111/pala.12158 [<a title="Cleary et al. 2015" href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pala.12158/abstract" target="_blank">link</a>]

Marek RM, <strong>Moon BC</strong>, Williams M, Benton MJ. 2015. The skull and endocranium of a Lower Jurassic ichthyosaur based on digital reconstructions. <em>Palaeontology</em>, <strong>58</strong>(4), 723–742. doi:10.1111/pala.12174 [<a href="http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pala.12174/abstract" target="_blank">link</a>]]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>475</wp:post_id>
  <wp:post_date>2015-05-03 12:24:13</wp:post_date>
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<item>
  <title>A new look</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2015/05/03/a-new-look/</link>
  <pubDate>Sun, 03 May 2015 11:30:31 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=477</guid>
  <description/>
  <content:encoded><![CDATA[It's spring cleaning time, so I've decided to shake up the blog (ha! yes this really is meant to be a blog) and give it a bit of a refresh by changing the design. There are also things that I'm steadily updating.

As always, there are potential future posts and ideas that may come to fruition, and of course, a PhD to finish in the meantime.]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[]]></excerpt:encoded>
  <wp:post_id>477</wp:post_id>
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<item>
  <title>From now on</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2015/12/17/from-now-on/</link>
  <pubDate>Thu, 17 Dec 2015 21:05:13 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=488</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[<h1>Ichthyosaurs</h1>
The great thing is that ichthyosaurs are so awesome: no one feels bad about spending all their time thinking about them. That's what I've spent my last four years doing. It will also be what I spend a large part of the next three years doing.

Certainly that doesn't mean that ichthyosaurs are the only interesting thing out there: having the joy of being in such a large research group, there are so many people doing so many different things in palaeontology. I'm looking forward to the next three years and also the trials and treats they will bring.
<h1>Next</h1>
All of that is a prelude to the announcement that that PhD that I started in 2011 is now at its end, in the first instance: there remain only the corrections and eventual publishing (hopefully) to deal with. And in the meantime, I've only gone and wrangled myself a job! much to my parents amusement, surprise, and pleasure.

The joy of not having a PhD is that there is no burdening deadline rapidly approaching where everything becomes do-or-die; no letters threatening to kick me off the course should I not submit by such and such a date (ahem); no late nights worrying about all those things that you could do, haven't done, should have done, want to do … people say that doing a PhD is one of the most stressful things you can do in life. Thankfully, I've spoken to various postdocs who say that finding grant money afterwards is much worse, so I have that to look forward to.
<h1>Strawberry</h1>
But the great thing about doing a postdoc – and, particularly from my point of view, doing the postdoc that I'm doing – is that what I am doing next is a continuation and extension: as part of the continuing <a href="http://www.brlsi.org/museum-collections/jesbi" target="_blank">JESBI</a> (Jurassic Environment of Strawberry Bank, Ilminster; I don't know whether it still has that name) project I'll be doing more ichthyosaurs anatomy, adding in some marine crocodilians, then extending to do function studies with a slew of numerical, engineering-based techniques; all in the spirit of onwards and upwards. This is alongside the <del>venerable</del> esteemed coalition of Matt Williams (Bath Royal Literary and Scientific Institute); Mike Benton, Emily Rayfield, and Jakob Vinther (Bristol); Matt Friedman and PhD student (Oxford), and Andrew Ross (National Museum of Scotland).

Rather conveniently, this has been summed up recently be several of the above in an <a href="http://jgs.lyellcollection.org/content/early/2015/06/29/jgs2014-144" target="_blank">article</a>, <a href="https://www.leverhulme.ac.uk/awards-made/awards-focus/exceptional-early-jurassic-fossils-strawberry-bank-somerset" target="_blank">webpage</a>, and was also presented at the Palaeontological Association Annual Meeting earlier this week. This is simply an introduction and notice of changes – this post doesn't actually say that much.

The important thing is: watch this space…]]></content:encoded>
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  <title>Attenborough and the Sea Dragon</title>
  <link>https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/2018/01/06/attenborough-and-the-sea-dragon/</link>
  <pubDate>Sat, 06 Jan 2018 14:12:23 +0000</pubDate>
  <dc:creator>moononthebones</dc:creator>
  <guid isPermaLink="false">https://ichthyosaurs.wordpress.com/?p=506</guid>
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  <content:encoded><![CDATA[Recently, I’ve been involved in a documentary with the BBC: <em>Attenborough and the Sea Dragon</em> will be broadcast tomorrow evening (Sunday, 7 January 2018) at 8pm on BBC1. Here’s the trailer for the programme:

https://youtu.be/0te9B7Pjx9o

This documentary follows the story of a newly discovered ichthyosaur found near Lyme Regis in Dorset, UK. The collector, Chris Moore, is one of those lucky people who can spend much time on the beach, so has found many important fossils over many years. This includes the ichthyosaurs <em>Leptonectes moorei,</em> which is named after him. I also don’t think I’ve ever seen him not smiling.

I’ll post a bit about how I became involved in the programme, and some of the story alongside it, after <em>A&amp;tSD</em> airs. I’ve only seen an earlier cut of the programme itself – at that point the producers, editors, animators, and many more had done a great job – and am looking forward to experiencing the final version. Hopefully you’ll enjoy it too.

As a bit of a spoiler, you can see write-ups of two parts that Fiann Smithwick and Emily Rayfield at the University of Bristol – and myself – contributed to the programme. These cover Fiann’s <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/ZbNR59NVZMsQLfC2qT5SXk/bringing-the-past-to-life-in-technicolour" target="_blank" rel="noopener">discovery of preserved skin</a> on the ichthyosaur fossil and determining its colour patterning. And Emily’s and my <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3gBPbbRKVJQxRMwYkkPqPGM/big-jaws-big-bite" target="_blank" rel="noopener">calculating how powerful the bite</a> was of another, larger ichthyosaur that was swimming around at the same time. The programme website is here: <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09m2kgl" target="_blank" rel="noopener">http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b09m2kgl</a>]]></content:encoded>
  <excerpt:encoded><![CDATA[An introduction to Attenborough and the Sea Dragon.]]></excerpt:encoded>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[peter]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>oretepbalone@yahoo.co.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Whilst watching the programme last night I thought I heard at one point that an Ichthy was in the process of giving birth and amazingly both baby &amp; mother died and were preserved in that state. Was I correct in what I thought i heard? If so, the bigger question is, what could have caused that situation. It must have been something amazing. Whatever it was, would be instant. Any ideas to get me thinking?]]></wp:comment_content>
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    <wp:comment_author><![CDATA[Ben]]></wp:comment_author>
    <wp:comment_author_email>benjamin.moon@bristol.ac.uk</wp:comment_author_email>
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    <wp:comment_content><![CDATA[Yes! That was one of the things mentioned in the programme. Fiann and I talk a bit about ichthyosaurs giving birth to live young in the recent Palaeocast episode here: http://www.palaeocast.com/ichthyosaurs/

We have many fossils showing ichthyosaurs with unborn young preserved inside them. Many of these come from the rocks around Stuttgart in Sw Germany. It’s seems that this may have been a hotbed for pregnant ichthyosaurs to visit. Because of the effort of developing young inside the body, there were many stresses placed on the mother: getting enough food for herself and the young, keeping out of the way of predators when the body has become much heavier, even things like breathing and blood flow would be affected. Therefore it’s not entirely surprising that we do get many pregnant ichthyosaur fossils if there were once lots of ichthyosaurs there. 

One specimen that features in the programme appears to show an ichthyosaur in the act of being born. At the time of birth just about the mother’s exertion is going into expelling the young. Sometimes this just can’t be done, and eventually the mother becomes exhausted and may not be able to swim to the surface to breathe. Ichthyosaurs are air breathers. In this case the mother and young both die and sink to the sea floor to be fossilised. 

I have heard the suggestion that with this specimen, the young ichthyosaur may not have been in the process of being born, but may have been pushed out by gases as the carcass rots. This is a compelling argument, but given that the bones of mother and infants have not been disrupted or scattered, it suggests that the infant  may well have been in the birth canal at death and probably being born.]]></wp:comment_content>
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