Ichthyosaurs Research Paper

Ichthyosaurs, or fish-lizards, are fish-shaped reptiles that lived in our oceans 160 million years ago, during the Jurassic period. Paleontologists discovered the first fossils in the early 1800s, far before dinosaurs were ever discovered. This genus evolved from animals that lived on land. They had more than eighty different species in their genus. One species of the ichthyosaurs is the Ophthalmosaurus. As an adult, this creature was two times the size of a human with a tooth filled snout. Although they got to be this size, the ophthalmosaurus was only a medium sized fish. The smallest of this species was no longer than a human arm. Generally, these fish were not the aggressive type. In fact, they’re behavior could have been pleasant, even. There was not much information gathered on these species because around …show more content…
They lived from 245 million years ago to around 90 million years ago. This is incredible because it is the same amount of time that every single species of dinosaur walked on the planet. The ichthyosaur’s fossils have been found all over each continent. This could mean that they migrated easily and often. Since they evolved from land-living animals, they were an air-breathing reptiles. This means that they did not have gills like most other fish, and they had legs and arms. Scientists think they might have looked like lizards with flippers. Due to the fact that scientists only have fragments of a skeleton to base from, the ichthyosaur was thought to be many different things, including but not limited to: lizards, crocodiles, amphibians, and mammals. Starting in the twentieth century, scientists started learning how to study creatures better, and they finally classified the ichthyosaur as a reptile that is part of the Diapsida group. This group hosts snakes, lizards, crocodiles and