A newly described Moroccan mosasaur, Pluridens imelaki, had a skull 1.25 meters long and an estimated body length of about 9 meters or more. Its fossil—a remarkably rare, articulated skull with associated jaws—comes from rocks formed in a shallow sea roughly 66–67 million years ago. The species’ long, slender jaws and distinctive teeth set it apart from another mosasaur found in the same region.
What was the new Moroccan mosasaur?
Pluridens imelaki is a newly described species of mosasaurid, an extinct marine squamate reptile. Nicholas R. Longrich and Nour-Eddine Jalil named it in a paper published on March 5, 2026. It belongs to Pluridens, a genus within the mosasaur subgroup Halisaurinae. The holotype, the specimen used to define the species, is catalogued as MHNM.KHG.1525. It preserves an articulated skull with associated lower jaws and teeth. [c001]
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How big was Pluridens imelaki?
The skull measures 1.25 meters long. From that skull, Longrich and Jalil estimate a total body length of about 9 meters or more. This is an estimate, not a directly measured complete skeleton: the documented specimen is the skull, jaws, and dentition. [c001]
How it compares with Thalassotitan atrox
A separate Moroccan mosasaur, Thalassotitan atrox, was reported by the Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle with a 1.4-meter skull and a body length of nearly 12 meters. That makes the reported Thalassotitan larger than the estimated P. imelaki; they are different species, not two measurements of the same animal. The museum describes T. atrox as an apex predator with massive, conical teeth. [c002]
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| Species | Skull length | Estimated total length | Evidence and description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pluridens imelaki | 1.25 m | About 9 m or more | Articulated skull with associated lower jaws and teeth; dimensions and estimate reported by Longrich and Jalil (2026). [c001] |
| Thalassotitan atrox | 1.4 m | Nearly 12 m | Figures reported in a Muséum national d’Histoire naturelle announcement; described there as a giant apex predator. [c002] |
What made its skull and teeth unusual?
The species is identified by a combination of features in its snout, jaws, and teeth. The snout is slender and rectangular, and the meeting point between the premaxilla at the front of the upper jaw and the maxilla behind it is T-shaped and interlocking. A prominent ridge runs along the top of the premaxilla.
Its lower jaws are exceptionally long and slender, with about 25 tooth positions along each dentary, the main tooth-bearing bone of the lower jaw. The teeth also change shape along the jaws: the front teeth are recurved and claw-like, while the posterior teeth have bases that hook backward and straighter, triangular tips. These traits, along with differences in eye size and rostral innervation, help distinguish P. imelaki from the Moroccan species P. serpentis found in the same deposits. [c001]
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Where and when was it found?
The fossil came from Sidi Chennane in Khouribga Province, Morocco, in the upper Couche III phosphate beds. The paper places these uppermost Maastrichtian deposits at approximately 66–67 million years old, near the end of the Cretaceous. At the time, the site lay in a shallow marine embayment on the eastern Atlantic margin, associated with a productive marine upwelling system. [c001]
What did Pluridens imelaki eat?
The available evidence does not identify a specific meal or prey item: the paper does not report stomach contents for this specimen. Its long, slender jaws and distinct tooth shapes instead support an inference about feeding ecology. Longrich and Jalil propose that P. imelaki and the co-occurring P. serpentis differed in foraging strategy and occupied separate ecological niches. The evidence supports a difference between the species, but not a confirmed prey list for P. imelaki. [c001]
Why does this rare fossil matter?
Only one P. imelaki specimen has been documented among many hundreds of Moroccan mosasaur remains collected over years. Its rarity shows that a fossil-rich region can still yield previously unrecognized species, even after extensive collecting. [c001]
The authors also use the species to argue that halisaurines remained diverse late in the Cretaceous. Rather than simply disappearing as mosasaurines became prominent, they suggest halisaurines underwent a minor adaptive radiation in low-latitude seas. In their interpretation, halisaurines were important members of those marine ecosystems, not merely an evolutionary group being replaced. [c001]
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