Researchers have formally identified a group of elasmosaur fossils — some of the most famous in North America. The marine reptile, Traskasaura sandrae, a type of plesiosaur, has been added to a new and “very odd” genus which is unlike others known to science. 

T. sandrae had a 12-meter-long (about 40 foot) neck, and robust and sharp teeth that were likely used for crushing its prey. According to a new study, published in the Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, T. sandrae had an interesting mix of traits, both primitive and derived, that is unique only to its species. 

Based on the fossilized remains, the research team believes that this mix of traits allowed it to hunt prey from above, and may have been the first plesiosaur to do so. 

Identifying the Adult Elasmosaur Fossil

In 1988, paleontologists discovered the first T. sandrae along the Puntledge River on Vancouver Island, Canada. Since the initial discovery in the ’80s, paleontologists have uncovered fossilized remains of three different T. sandrae specimens. 

These remains include a well-preserved fossil of a juvenile skeleton, a solitary humerus, and neck vertebrae. All in all, by 2002, the fossils had been described to science and gained even greater fame as T. sandrae became the Provincial Fossil of British Columbia. 

“Plesiosaur fossils have been known for decades in British Columbia. However, the identity of the animal that left the fossils has remained a mystery, even as it [was] declared BC’s provincial fossil in 2023. Our new research, published today, finally solves this mystery,” F. Robin O’Keefe, a professor from Marshall University in West Virginia and lead author of the study, said in a press release. 

Read More: Plesiosaur Sheds Light on Marine Reptile Evolution During the Jurassic Period

Naming Traskasaura sandrae

According to the study, the description of the adult elasmosaur fossil in 2002 was not enough to warrant adding it to a new genus, especially since most of the fossil was unambiguous from other elasmosaur fossils. 

However, the recent findings of a well-preserved partial remains by an international research team provided more information on the species, and it was finally assigned a new genus. 

“The fossil record is full of surprises. It is always gratifying to discover something unexpected. When I first saw the fossils and realized they represented a new taxon, I thought it might be related to other plesiosaurs from the Antarctic. My Chilean colleague Rodrigo Otero thought differently, and he was right; Traskasaura is a strange, convergently evolved, fascinating beast,” O’Keefe said in a press release. 

The research team named T. sandrae after Michael and Heather Trask, the original finders of the first specimen in 1988, and for Sandra Lee O’Keefe, who, according to the study authors, was “a valiant warrior in the fight against breast cancer. “In loving memory.” 

The team also dedicates the name to Elizabeth Nicholls, one of the team members who helped identify the species back in 2002.

Read More: 183-Million-Year-Old Fossil Reveals That Plesiosaur Skin Was Smooth and Scaly

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A graduate of UW-Whitewater, Monica Cull wrote for several organizations, including one that focused on bees and the natural world, before coming to Discover Magazine. Her current work also appears on her travel blog and Common State Magazine. Her love of science came from watching PBS shows as a kid with her mom and spending too much time binging Doctor Who.