Re: Kronosaurus

[Pieter.Depuydt@rug.ac.be]

> Cna anyone provide me with references to this giant Pliosaur? I am 
> going to be making a 1/24 scale resin model kit of it at some point, 
> but I have no views of the skull except for the side. Can anyone 
> reference me to drawings or photos of the top of the skull?
> 
> Thanks.


I think you'd best travel to Harvard University's Museum of 
Comparative Zoology, where the mounted Kronosaurus skeleton is on 
display, because as far as I know, there has been published no detailed 
description of the skeleton as yet!
Kronosaurus queenslandicus was erected in 1924 by Longman on a 
partial snout and some other fragmentary remains (Longman, Memoirs of 
the Queensland Museum 6, 1924) found in the Toolebuc formation of 
Queensland. A complete pliosaur  skeleton from the Wollumbilla formation was 
referred to this genus. It took 25 years to get it fully prepared 
and mounted (Romer and Lewis, Breviora 112, 1959);
this is the famous 'Kronosaurus' skeleton we all know 
('Kronosaurus' between quotation marks since there is some doubt if 
this skeleton belongs to the same taxon as the original material 
described by Longman).
So 'Kronosaurus' remains poorly known despite its completeness and 
popular appeal.

I think the best known pliosaur genus is Rhomaleosaurus from the 
Oxford Clay, am I right? (do not know the species name from the top of 
my head)
Please correct me if not so.

Pieter Depuydt