The extinct ocean-going plesiosaurs were unique within vertebrates because they used two
flipper pairs identical in morphology for propulsion. Although fossils of these Mesozoic …

Plesiosaurians are an extinct group of highly derived Mesozoic marine reptiles with a global
distribution that spans 135 million years from the Early Jurassic to the Late Cretaceous …

The diapsid plesiosaurs were pelagic and inhabited the oceans from the Triassic to the
Cretaceous. A key evolutionary character of plesiosaurs is the four wing‐like flippers. While …

Identical tandem flippers of plesiosaurs, which are unique among all animals, have been a
source of debate regarding the role of hind flippers in their locomotion. Here, inspired by the …

Underwater locomotion by plesiosaurs has long been a controversial problem with many
hypotheses suggested. Almost without exception these models were based on limited …

Plesiosaurs are an enigmatic, diverse extinct group of Mesozoic marine reptiles well known
for their unique body plan with two pairs of flippers and usually an elongated neck. The long …

The terrestrial origins of the diapsid Sauropterygia and Testudines are uncertain, with the
latter being highly controversially discussed to this day. For only 15 Ma, Nothosauroidea …

The Plesiosauria is an extinct group of marine reptiles once common in mesozoic seas.
Previous work on plesiosaur hunting styles has suggested that short‐necked, large‐headed …

Background The Plesiosauria (Sauropterygia) are secondary marine diapsids. They are the
only tetrapods to have evolved hydrofoil fore-and hindflippers. Once this specialization of …

Hydrofoil‐shaped limbs (flipper‐hydrofoils) have evolved independently several times in
secondarily marine tetrapods and generally fall into two functional categories:(1) those that …