Name: Mosasaurus anceps
Age: Upper Cretaceous Maastrichtian Stage
Size: (25.4mm=1 inch): 41 mm long (along curve), 21 mm wide at base. Matrix: 87 mm by 80 mm
Fossil Site: Khouribga Plateau, Morocco
Code: MST02
Price: $40.00 - sold
 Description:
This is a fine example of a tooth from the seagoing reptile Mosasaurus
anceps coming from the Late Cretaceous phosphate bed deposits near
Khouribga, Morocco. These seagoing lizards became extinct at the end
of the Cretaceous, and have the modern-day Varanids (monitor lizards)
as their closest living relatives. Many fossils from the region are
an outgrowth of the phosphate mining industry. One of the suppliers
of this material described for me the mad scramble that ensues when
a section of wall is dynamited. The locals move in swiftly, collecting
the fossils exposed before the earth moving equipment arrives. Pieces
such as this are the result of those efforts. This one has been prepared
nearly free of its sandstone matrix prison, making for a striking
display. |
