Fossil Marine Reptiles

Find out what was going on in the oceans while dinosaurs dominated the land in the Fossil Marine Reptiles gallery.

See some of the most complete fossils of these prehistoric sea animals, including ichthyosaurs and plesiosaurs, and learn about the work of pioneering palaeontologist Mary Anning.

Plus, look out for the skeleton cast of the giant ground sloth, a land mammal often mistaken for a dinosaur.

Star specimens and exhibits

• specimens collected by Mary Anning and her brother Joseph in the early 1800s
• Jurassic crocodiles that lived in the sea
• fossils that inspired stories of sea dragons
• a female ichthyosaur fossil with evidence of six unborn young in her womb
• and another specimen that died and was preserved in the process of giving birth