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The holotype of Wahlisaurus massarae is known only from a partial skull and postcranial skeleton from the Lower Jurassic, collected near Normanton on Soar, Nottinghamshire, UK. It is diagnosed relative to other ichthyosaurs on the basis of autapomorphies of the coracoid and a unique combination of characters. Here, we report a second specimen of W. massarae. The new specimen comprises a practically complete right coracoid that clearly shows the unique morphology of W. massarae. This specimen was collected in situ from a quarry in Somerset, from the base of the Blue Lias Formation, which corresponds to the Triassic–Jurassic boundary (uppermost Rhaetian or lowermost Hettangian), extending the geographic and stratigraphic range of the species. Furthermore, the coracoid of the new specimen is 20% anteroposteriorly longer than in the holotype, representing a larger individual. In light of preparation and the identification of additional fragments of the holotype, a redescription of the skull morphology of the holotype, as well as comparison with the skull roof of Leptonectes tenuirostris, is included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A formerly undescribed Ichthyosaurus specimen from the collection of the Niedersächsisches Landesmuseum (Lower Saxony State Museum) in Hannover, Germany, provides valuable new information. The skeleton was collected from the Lower Jurassic strata (lower Hettangian, Blue Lias Formation) of Doniford Bay, Somerset, UK. However, the specimen is a composite as almost the entire tail has been added and other parts are reconstructed. Regardless of the incomplete preservation, the estimated total length of this individual, based on the skull and precaudal length, is between 300 and 330 cm and it is thus the largest unequivocal example of the genus Ichthyosaurus. Cranial and postcranial characters, specifically from the maxilla, lacrimal, jugal, the humerus, and the ilium justify a referral to I. somersetensis. A fork-like shape of the proximal end of the ilium is unusual and has not been reported for any species of Ichthyosaurus. Likewise the presence of four elements in the third row of the hindfin, indicated by the presence of a bifurcation is novel for the species and has wider implications for the taxonomic utility of hindfins within the genus. The specimen also bears an embryo, which is only the third embryo known for Ichthyosaurus and the first to be positively identified to species level. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Thousands of ichthyosaurs have been discovered from the rich Lower Jurassic deposits of the UK, with the majority collected from along the Lyme Regis-Charmouth area of the Dorset coast. Here, I describe a new leptonectid ichthyosaur,Wahlisaurus massaraegen. et sp. nov., based on a partial skull and an incomplete skeleton collected from the Lower Jurassic (Hettangian) of Nottinghamshire, England.Wahlisauruscan be referred to the Leptonectidae through the possession of an extremely slender and delicate snout, and a mandible shorter than the snout which produces an overbite. This referral is supported by a phylogenetic analysis. The new taxon is distinguished from other ichthyosaurs through a unique combination of characters and autapomorphies of the pectoral girdle including the presence of both a scapular-coracoid foramen and a large and roughly ovoid coracoid foramen. A coracoid foramen has only previously been reported in the Triassic ichthyosaurCymbospondylus. The peculiar coracoid morphology further highlights the taxonomic utility of coracoids in ichthyosaurs. The aforementioned features demonstrate thatW. massaraecannot be referred to any currently recognized leptonectid.Wahlisaurusis the ninth Lower Jurassic ichthyosaur genus to be recognized worldwide, and the fifth documented in the Lower Lias Group. http://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:EE500E11-66AB-43C8-BB59-F21654763241 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]