Champsosaur Reptile Vertebrae Fossils from Hell Creek

Description: Presented are five unrelated vertebrae sections from different Champsosaurs.

Choristodera is an order of semi-aquatic diapsid reptiles which ranged from the Middle Jurassic, or possibly Late Triassic, to at least the early Miocene. Choristoderes have been found in North America, Asia, and Europe. Champsosauridae is the best-known family of the Choristodera and typifies the group. The skull of these animals have a long, thin snout filled with small, sharp conical teeth. This is due to champsosaurs and gharials occupying similar niches: hunting small aquatic prey in rivers and swamps. This is a classic example of evolutionary relay. More primitive choristoderes have shorter, broader snouts.

I recently purchased a large lot of dinosaur, reptile and mammal material from our primary collector. He lives in Montana and has over fifteen years of field collecting experience. Ten days were spent in obtaining this lot. The fossils were discovered in Cretaceous stream channel deposits. Some were surface collected as float, many were partially eroded out of the low-lying surrounding gullies and bad lands. The work of discovery continued upon his return home. There the specimens had to be cleaned and identified, a long and tedious process that lasted many days. Upon completion, all the specimens were photographed, notated and submitted to us at the Fossil Mall for consideration of purchase. Needless to say, we bought the whole batch.

A word regarding the legality of these fossils. Our provider only collects on private ranch and farmlands of Montana and S. Dakota. His relationships with these landowners have been cultivated over many years of door knocking and often difficult negotiations. Our collector, in the beginning stage of a possible collecting arrangement, cannot even contemplate a deal until he has walked the land holdings to discover if there are ancient remains to be found.