#paleontology #fossils

An article published in the journal "Scientific Reports" describes the identification of a new species of marine #reptile with an exceptionally long tail that lived about 244 million years ago, in the Middle #Triassic period, in today's China. A team of researchers named it #Honghesaurus longicaudalis after examining a complete skeleton discovered in the Guanling Formation in China's Yunnan province.
https://english.netmassimo.com/2023/01/12/honghesaurus-longicaudalis-was-a-marine-reptile-with-an-exceptionally-long-tail-that-lived-244-million-years-ago/

#Triassic Marine Reptile Had Incredibly Long Tail https://www.sci.news/paleontology/honghesaurus-longicaudalis-11551.html Paper: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-11309-2

#Pachypleurosaurs are known only from the #TethysOcean, and its potential diet may include soft-bodied #invertebrates (e.g., #cephalopods), some #shrimps, and small or juvenile #fishes. In general morphology, the most striking feature of #Honghesaurus longicaudal is its incredibly long tail, which measures 117% of the precaudal length.