Overview
- University of Manchester researchers formally described the species in Papers of Palaeontology, with paleontologist Dean Lomax among the authors.
- The ichthyosaur dates to the Pliensbachian stage of the Early Jurassic, roughly 192–184 million years ago, and is likely the most complete reptile known from that interval.
- Measuring about three meters, the animal had a large eye socket and a long, sword-like snout consistent with feeding on fish and squid.
- The specimen was discovered by a collector on the Dorset Jurassic Coast in 2001 and is curated at the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto.
- Researchers say the find fills a key gap in ichthyosaur evolution, with reports noting an unusual pointed bone near the nostril among its distinctive features.