![]() However, it easily stands out more than any other prehistoric aquatic predator. megalodon is a single species as opposed to a genus. The top entry on the list is a little unusual because C. ![]() Mosasaurus has also become famous in popular media, due in part to its slightly exaggerated reconstruction in the film Jurassic World. It probably fed primarily on smaller marine reptiles and large fish such a Xiphactinus. Perhaps exceeding 13 meters in length, Mosasaurus was one of the largest, and possibly the largest, of all the Mosasaurs. Large Mosasaurs like Mosasaurus were the aquatic apex predators of the Late Cretaceous. While Elasmosaurus was a very large predator, reaching lengths in excess of 10 meters, it also seems to have been attacked occasionally by the prehistoric shark Cretoxyrhina. This suggests that they typically stayed lower in the water column than their prey. They also possessed eyes facing upward, meaning that their depth perception in this direction would have been excellent. It is the type genus of Elasmosauridae, a family known for relatively long necks and comparatively short tails. Plesiosaurs are some of the most iconic of all prehistoric aquatic predators, and Elasmosaurus is one of the most iconic of the Plesiosaurs. The eyes of Anomalocaris are also extremely sophisticated. Some have suggested it fed on ancient soft-bodied organisms. It is possibly one of the first apex predators. It lived during the Early-Mid Cambrian, which is the oldest of the Paleozoic periods. It's teeth are also the largest teeth any known animal has ever used for eating, although, elephant tusks are larger.Īnomalocaris is by far the oldest genus on this list. Current estimates suggest large Livyatan could reach 18 meters in length. megalodon, some paleontologists believe Livyatan was the behaviorally dominant of the two. Although it had to coexist with the large shark C. However, it would have been more similar to raptorial sperm whales such as Zygophyseter. It was a genus of Physeteroid whale, the same group that contains modern sperm whales. ![]() While Livyatan was named fairly recently, in 2010, it has already become quite popular. It probably fed primarily on marine reptiles like smaller Plesiosaurs. funkei, which has received the somewhat ominous popular name "Predator X," could have reached anywhere from 10 to 13 meters in length. While the aforementioned Kronosaurus is considered by some to be the largest Pliosaur, Pliosaurus is the more common selection. Because of this, it was probably a hypercarnivore, feeding on tough prey like ammonites or other placoderms. It's bite force has been estimated at 750 kg. Dunkleosteus was one of the largest, and probably the most powerful. These ancient fish had osteoderms, plates of exposed bone that could have served as protection. Some consider it to be the largest of all Plesiosaurs.ĭunkleosteus was a genus of Placoderm, an entire class of fish that has been extinct since the end-Devonian, around 360 million years ago. It was also extremely large, growing to nearly 11 meters in length. It was an apex predator, and is known to have fed on smaller Plesiosaurs. It that lived in shallow seas across the Pacific Ocean during the Mid Cretaceous. Kronosaurus was a genus of Pliosaur, which is a family of Plesiosaurs known for proportionally shorter necks and more robust bodies. Basilosaurus was an apex predator, probably feeding on smaller whales such as Dorudon. ![]() It possessed small hind limbs, which are not visible in modern whales, although the bones still exist in some species. It also lacked the "melon" which is used for communication and echolocation. The brain of Basilosaurus was not as large as that of modern whales. Due to its "serpentine" physique, it was originally though to have been a Mosasaur. Being a cartilaginous fish, very little of Helicoprion has been preserved, so not much is known about it.īasilosaurus was a large predatory whale from the Eocene. However, recently it has been determined that this whorl was actually the animal's teeth. Helicoprion is most known for its extremely bizarre "tooth whorl." While named in 1899, paleontologists initially had no way of knowing what the whorl was used for or even its position on the body. Big thanks to Concaventor Wrangler, DragonSaber73, Michael Benucci, and Therapod King for helping create this list.
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