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''Kronosaurus'' ( ; meaning "lizard of Kronos") is an extinct genus of short-necked pliosaur. It was among the largest pliosaurs, and is named after the leader of the Greek Titans, Cronus. It lived in the Early Cretaceous Period (Aptian-Albian).〔〔Kear BP. 2003. Cretaceous marine reptiles of Australia: a review of taxonomy and distribution. ''Cretaceous Research'' 24: 277–303.〕 ==Discovery and species== In 1899, Andrew Crombie of Hughenden discovered a "scrap of bone" containing six conical teeth, and gave this fragmentary fossil to the Queensland Museum. Twenty-five years later, then-director Heber Longman formally described the specimen as the holotype of a new species: ''Kronosaurus queenslandicus''.〔〔Mather, Patricia, with Agnew, N.H. et al. ''The History of the Queensland Museum, 1862-1986'' Retrieved from (archive.org )〕 More ''Kronosaurus'' material, including a partial skull, was discovered in 1929, in the same location as Crombie's original find.〔 While touring Australia in 1932, a fossil-hunting expedition from Harvard University led by William E. Schevill was told of some interesting rocks on some property near Hughenden.〔 The rocks were limestone nodules containing the most complete skeleton of ''Kronosaurus'' ever discovered.〔〔Meyers, Troy. ''Kronosaurus Chronicles''. Australian Age of Dinosaurs, Issue 3, 2005. Retrieved from (australianageofdinosaurs.com )〕 After dynamiting the nodules out of the ground (and into smaller pieces), Scheville had them shipped back to Harvard for examination and preparation. The skull—which matched the holotype jaw fragment of ''K. queenslandicus''—was prepared right away, but time and budget constraints put off restoration of the nearly complete skeleton for 20 years.〔 The restored and mounted skeleton was displayed at Harvard in 1959.〔〔 In 1977, a Colombian peasant farmer from Moniquirá turned up an enormous stone while tilling his field, which he later recognized as a possible fossil. Excavation revealed a nearly complete ''Kronosaurus'' skeleton, one of the best preserved fossils to come from Colombia.〔http://museoelfosil.com/〕 Oliver Hampe formally described the specimen in 1992, assigning it to a second species, ''K. boyacensis''.〔 The people of Villa de Leyva built a museum, ''El Fósil'', around the spot where the skeleton was excavated, and the ''K. boyacensis'' skeleton is currently on display there.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Kronosaurus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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