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Ichthyosaur marine reptile. Representative evidence-type visual; not the exact specimen.
OBJECT DOSSIER · SMITHSONIAN OPEN ACCESS

Ichthyosaur marine reptile — Ichthyosaurus ?conybeari

SAGE Museum Deep Time scientific dossier
Date / Period
Early Jurassic · Early Jurassic.
Object Type
complete skeleton in matrix
Medium
representative_scientific_visual
About This Object

Geologic period: Early Jurassic

Age: Early Jurassic.

Taxonomic note: The Smithsonian catalog retains the name Ichthyosaurus ?conybeari and lists historical names including Ichthyosaurus intermedius.

Feeding: Predatory marine feeding.

Locomotion: Fully aquatic swimming.

Body plan: Streamlined marine reptile with paddle-like limbs, elongated jaws and tail-powered swimming anatomy.

Evidence: The complete skeleton is direct evidence. Species-level identification remains tentative in the Smithsonian catalog.

Why it matters: The question mark attached to the species name is itself valuable evidence: museums often preserve scientific uncertainty directly in specimen labels.

Plain Language Identity: An Early Jurassic ichthyosaur specimen tentatively identified as Ichthyosaurus conybeari.

What You Are Looking At: A nearly complete ichthyosaur skeleton preserved in rock matrix.

Ecosystem: Early Jurassic marine ecosystem of what is now southern England.

Formation: Blue Lias Formation.

Find Location: Dorsetshire, England.

Preservation: Complete skeleton preserved in matrix.

Open Questions: Do not remove the question mark or silently present conybeari as a certain identification.

Source Urls: https://naturalhistory.si.edu/visit/virtual-tour/current-exhibits/deep-time-virtual-tour-fossil-list; https://www.si.edu/object/nmnhpaleobiology_3426639

Enrichment Method: SAGE curated research pass; title + scientific name + source scene matched; historic taxonomy retained where relevant; evidence separated from inference

Scientific name: Ichthyosaurus ?conybeari

Evidence / representation: Representative evidence-type visual; not the exact specimen.

Why It Is In This SAGE Exhibit

Representative evidence-type visual; not the exact specimen.

Jurassic Giants: Size, Teeth, Armor and Survival.

Provenance
Smithsonian Deep Time source scene: Reptiles Move Back to the Ocean in the Jurassic
Exhibition History
Included in the SAGE Museum Dinosaurs & Deep Time staging exhibit.
Subjects & Themes
Ichthyosaurus ?conybeari Early Jurassic complete skeleton in matrix Reptiles Move Back to the Ocean in the Jurassic Jurassic Giants
ORIGINAL COLLECTION SOURCE

This object page stays inside SAGE Museum. The Smithsonian link below is provided only as the original scholarly collection record. It opens separately.