The discovery of a rare new fossil sheds light on NZ’s extinct dolphin-like reptiles

An artist's impression of a Platypterigius ichthyosaur. Dmitry Bogdanov, CC BY-SA

Ichthyosaurs were reptiles that swam in the seas during the time of the dinosaurs. They evolved separately around 250 million years ago, possibly from a crocodile-like ancestor, to resemble fish and modern dolphins.

Then, they went extinct around 94 million years ago.