Tylosaurus pembinensis

Note: A digitally colored version of the original, available here:
sounder1995.deviantart.com/art…

Tylosaurus pembinensis (Marsh, 1872)

Sauropsida

Diapsida

Lepidosauria

Squamata
Toxicofera

Mosasauroidea

Mosasauridae

Tylosaurinae

Late Cretaceous

Central / Western United States

Length: 15 m

More than a century after Cope and Marsh first dug up fossils of this giant sea lizard, our view of her has changed drastically. We now know that she swam mostly using an asymmetrical tail fluke, was countershaded, and lacked a dorsal crest.

Sunday, September 13th, 2015

Majungasaurus crenatissimus

Note: A digitally colored version of the original, available here:
sounder1995.deviantart.com/art…

Majungasaurus crenatissimus (Lavocat, 1955)Sauropsida
Diapsida
Archosauria
Avemetatarsalia
Dinosauria
Saurischia
Theropoda
Ceratosauria
Abelisauroidea
Abelisauridae
Majungasaurinae

Maastrichtian (Late Cretaceous)
Madagascar

Length: 8 m

When she's not busy sleeping, Majungasaurus dined on sauropods such as Rapetosaurus and, occasionally, other Majungasaurus.

Saturday, September 12th, 2015

Deinotherium bozasi

Note: This is a digitally colored version of the original, available here:
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Deinotherium bozasi (Arambourg, 1934)
Mammalia
Afrotheria
Paenungulata
Proboscidea
Deinotheriidae

Late Miocene to Early Pleistocene
Africa

Height: 5 m at the shoulder

Up until around a million years ago, our ancestors in Africa walked in the shadows of one of the largest land mammals of all time.

Sunday, September 6th, 2015

Titanoboa cerrejonensis

Note: This is a digitally colored version of the original, available here: 
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Titanoboa cerrejonensis (Head et al., 2009)
Sauropsida
Diapsida
Lepidosauria
Squamata
Serpentes
Boidae
Boinae

Paleocene
Colombia

Length: 13 m

The largest snake of all time, she prowled the swamps of South America a mere 5 million years after the extinction of the non-avian dinosaurs.

Sunday, September 6th, 2015

Anomalocaris saron

Note: This is a digitally colored version of the original, available here:
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Anomalocaris saron (Hou, Bergstroem, & Ahlberg, 1995)
Stem-Arthropoda
Dinocaridida?
Radiodonta
Anomalocarididae

Early to Mid Cambrian
Chengjiang, Yunnan, China

Length: 2 m

At a time when most animals could fit in the palm of your hand, this close relative of arthropods was the largest apex predator of her time.

Sunday, September 6th, 2015

Velociraptor mongoliensis

*Note: This is a digitally colored version of the original, available here:
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Velociraptor mongoliensis (Osborn, 1924)
Dinosauria
Saurischia
Theropoda
Tetanurae
Coelurosauria
Maniraptora
Paraves
Dromaeosauridae
Velociraptorinae

Late Cretaceous
Mongolia, China

Length: 2.07 m

The sclerotic rings of this once obscure little dinosaur suggest that she was primarily a nocturnal and/or crepuscular hunter amongst the sand dunes of Late Cretaceous Mongolia and China. Clever girl.
Sunday, August 30th, 2015

C. megalodon

C. megalodon

Chondrichthyes (Cartilaginous Fishes)

Elasmobranchii

Selachimorpha / Selachii (Sharks)

Lamniformes

Lamnidae OR Otodontidae

-          if Lamnidae: Carcharodon megalodon (Agassiz, 1843)

-          else if Otodontidae: Carcharocles megalodon (Jordan & Hannibal, 1923)

Middle Miocene to Late Pliocene

Worldwide

Length: Up to 18 m?

The largest shark of all time, she possessed one of the most powerful bite forces known to humans and hunted whales as a regular part of her balanced diet.

On a more important note: STOP. KILLING. SHARKS. Sharks kill an average of 10 people every year. Humans kill about 100 million sharks every year. Eating shark fins might make you look posh in your country, but to the rest of the world, you just look like an ass.

Estimated Bite Force: 108,514 N - 182, 201 N (Wroe et al., 2008)

Friday, August 28^th, 2015