Name:
Dolichorhynchops (Greek for "long-snouted face"); pronounced DOE-lih-co-RIN-cops
Habitat:
Shores of North America
Historical Period:
Late Cretaceous (80-70 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 17 feet long; weight unknown
Diet:
Probably squids
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Large head with long, narrow snout and small teeth
About Dolichorhynchops:
Called "Dolly" by some paleontologists (who don’t like pronouncing long, difficult names any more than the average kid), Dolychorhynchops was a typical pliosaur, a type of aquatic reptile with a large head and a short neck (compared to its small-headed, long-necked cousins, the plesiosaurs). Based on an analysis of its skull, it seems that Dolichorhynchops wasn't the most robust biter and chewer of the Cretaceous seas, and likely subsisted on soft-bodied squids rather than fish.
