079_01: A Fossil Marine Lizard - Platecarpus

A black and white photo of a fossil marine lizard found near Edgemont, South Dakota. This sea reptile known as Platecarpus belongs to the great extinct family of Mosasaurs. The bones are in position as found except that the skeleton has been turned over. The rear paddles and much of the tail are missing. The full length of the animal in life was perhaps twenty feet. The fossil was mounted by James Bump of the Rapid City School of Mines in 1930.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/sternberg_album7/1303/thumbnail.jp