Ophthalmosaurids facts for kids
Quick facts for kids OphthalmosauridaeTemporal range: Middle Jurassic–Upper Cretaceous, 171.6–93.5 mya
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| Ophthalmosaurus icenicus skeleton | |
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Animalia
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Ophthalmosauridae
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Ophthalmosauridae were a group of ancient marine reptiles called Ichthyosaurs. They lived a long, long time ago, from the Middle Jurassic to the Upper Cretaceous periods. These amazing creatures swam in the oceans for millions of years.
Types of Ophthalmosauridae
The Ophthalmosauridae family had different groups within it. One group included types like Aegirosaurus and Ophthalmosaurus. Another group had animals such as Brachypterygius, Caypullisaurus, and Platypterygius.
Surviving Extinction Events
A big event at the end of the Jurassic period caused many animals to die out. But three types of Ophthalmosauridae survived this event: Caypullisaurus, Maiaspondylus, and Platypterygius. These survivors were found all over the world.
The very last one to disappear was Platypterygius. It died out about 30 million years before the end of the Upper Cretaceous period. This happened because of a "deep ocean anoxic event." This means the deep parts of the ocean lost almost all their oxygen.
Ichthyosaurs were reptiles, so they had to come to the surface to breathe air. However, the lack of oxygen in the deep ocean caused many of their prey animals to die. With less food available, the Ichthyosaurs could not survive, leading to their extinction.
Images for kids
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Ophthalmosaurus
See also
In Spanish: Oftalmosaúridos para niños
