Elasmosaurus was a marine reptile that lived in the Upper Cretaceous (about 80 million years ago) and belongs to the family Crocodylosaurs. It is known for its neck up to 2 meters long and 70 cervical vertebrae, with typical plesiosaur features. The name Thinosaurus is derived from the ancient Greek word meaning "thin plate lizard", referring to the cartilage junction between its ribs and spine, which makes its body flexible and flat.
Thinosaurus is about 14 meters long, of which about 7 meters belong to the neck, and the tail is also longer, which makes it more flexible in movement and posture. In contrast, it has a shorter torso part. This structure offers a huge advantage for it to catch swimming fish or other marine life in the water. It lacks limbs, has horizontally spread ribs and spine, and a half-moon-shaped sternum, indicating that it is fully adapted to seawater life and has difficulty moving on land.
Thinosaurus is believed to have fed on a variety of fish and marine invertebrates, and its tapered teeth are suitable for grabbing sliding prey. It may swallow its prey by swinging its head quickly after approaching it, while its long neck and flexible body allow it to make a variety of sharp turns to catch its prey. It may also dive underwater in search of prey.
A large number of fossil skeletons of Phalanosaurus were found in coastal cliffs in Kansas, USA, which provides a large number of research samples and gives us a deeper understanding of Phalanosaurus. Kansas coastal cliffs are typical western inland marine facies, with a large number of marine reptiles and fish fossils, which can better restore the paleoecological environment at that time.
Phalanosaurus represented an advanced predator in the Upper Cretaceous marine ecosystem, and also symbolized the high evolution and adaptation of plesiosaur reptiles. Its body structure is highly specialized in aquatic life and hunting, which made it occupy an important position in the ecological environment of the time, and achieved considerable success, as evidenced by its extensive fossil distribution. The study of Phalanosaurus has provided insight into marine ecosystems during the Cretaceous period.