page_title: Metriorhynchus
section_title: Palaeoecology
hierarchical_section_title: Metriorhynchus / Palaeoecology
caption_attribution_description: Fig. 1. Upper view of skull of Metriorhynchus geoffroyii (Steneosaurus temporalis). Fig. 2. Portion of occipital surface of do. Fig. 3. Under view of maxillary portion of do. Fig. 4. Upper view of lower jaw of do. (The figures are reduced views.) From the Oolitic Freestone, Bath.
context_page_description: Metriorhynchus is an extinct genus of marine crocodyliform that lived in the oceans during the Middle to Late Jurassic. Metriorhynchus was named by the German palaeontologist Christian von Meyer in 1830. Metriorhynchus was a carnivore that spent much, if not all, its life out at sea. No Metriorhynchus eggs or nests have been discovered, so little is known of the reptile's life cycle, unlike other large marine reptiles of the Mesozoic, such as plesiosaurs or ichthyosaurs which are known to have given birth to live young out at sea. Where Metriorhynchus mated, whether on land or at sea, is currently unknown. The name Metriorhynchus means "Moderate snout", and is derived from the Greek Metrio- and -rhynchos.
caption: Skull of M. geoffroyii
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