mosasaur – News, Research and Analysis – The Conversation

Illustration of the giant octopus. Image: Yohei Utsuki, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Hokkaido University

April 29, 2026

Were enormous octopuses apex predators in ancient oceans?

Thomas Clements, University of Reading

A newly discovered fossil suggests octopuses up to 19 metres long may have hunted in Cretaceous seas.

September 25, 2023

Giant sea lizards: fossils in Morocco reveal the astounding diversity of marine life 66 million years ago, just before the asteroid hit

Nicholas R. Longrich, University of Bath

Scientists have discovered a new species of mosasaur, a sea-dwelling lizard from the age of the dinosaurs, with strange, ridged teeth unlike those of any known reptile.

October 6, 2022

‘Sea monsters’ were real millions of years ago. New fossils tell about their rise and fall

Nicholas R. Longrich, University of Bath

Fossils of a giant killer mosasaur have been discovered, alongside the fossilised remains of its prey.

With four tiny legs and an extraordinarily long body, a fossil of the snake-like lizard Tetrapodophis amplectus has created controversy. (Julius Csotonyi)

November 18, 2021

A fossil of a snake‑like lizard has generated controversy beyond its identity

Michael Caldwell, University of Alberta and Tiago Rodrigues Simoes, Harvard University

In 2015, a published article described the fossil of a four-legged snake. New research has revealed that it is in fact a lizard, and the fossil is the centre of a scientific ethics debate.

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