Re: Plesiosaur necks (was Sauropods and lung development)

[Philidor11@aol.com]

Mr. Miller observes that '...the plesiosaur design is apparently better suited
for a plucking of individual items as opposed to the "fish net" approach you
suggest.'
Since the head was already in the water, I thought that a wider 'bill' would
not increase water resistence considerably.  I was visualizing the equivalent
of a duck's bill, which would allow more movement by the prey before capture.
This might be particularly important if the animal had to catch a large number
of quick, small prey.  The paintings I've seen of plesiosaurs showed
comparatively small fish being caught.
Is it possible that the fish being caught were near the surface and the head
did have to enter the water frequently? Thanks.