Brevicaudosaurus is an extinct genus of nothosauroid marine sauropterygian from the Middle Triassic of China. The type species is B. jiyangshanensis. It was a small animal, with specimens measuring approx. 40 cm (16 in) long in total length. It had a broad, flat body, with an unusually short and flattened tail compared to other nothosaurs, which indicates that it could not swim quickly and was probably adapted to a way of life as a benthic carnivore. The holotype, IVPP V 18625, was prepared by Y.-F. Chen.[1]
| Brevicaudosaurus Temporal range:
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Scientific classification 
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| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Superorder: | †Sauropterygia |
| Order: | †Nothosauroidea |
| Genus: | †Brevicaudosaurus Shang, Wu & Li, 2020 |
| Type species | |
| †Brevicaudosaurus jiyangshanensis Shang, Wu & Li, 2020
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References
edit- ^ Shang, Qing-Hua; Wu, Xiao-Chun; Li, Chun (2020-05-03). "A New Ladinian Nothosauroid (Sauropterygia) from Fuyuan, Yunnan Province, China". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 40 (3): e1789651. doi:10.1080/02724634.2020.1789651. ISSN 0272-4634. S2CID 227241106.