Plesiosaurus, the "Near Lizard," was
a small aquatic reptile at less than
four meters long. The first complete
fossil was found by the first female
paleontologist, Mary Anning. Its
family Plesiosauridae is 
characterized by having a small head
mounted on a long neck and four fins
on a body with a stubby little tail.
Sound familiar? Because the Loch 
Ness Monster is said to have similar
features, it is commonly believed to
be a Plesiosaurus. However, although
Plesiosaurus lived in the 
prehistoric UK, it died out in the 
Jurassic Period, which means there 
is no chance that any could have 
survived in the Loch for over a 
hundred million years. 

Plesiosaurus lived in open ocean,
using is four paddle-like fins to
propel itself in chase of fish and
cephalopod prey. It may not have 
been able to smell underwater, so
it would have had to rely on other
senses to find food. Contrary to
popular belief, Plesiosaurus and its
relatives did not crawl on land to 
lay eggs, so they won't be building
sandcastles anytime soon. Instead, 
it remained in the water to give 
birth to live young. Paleontologists
learned this from a remarkable 
fossil of the plesiosaur 
Polycotylus, which displays the 
bones of an adult and its single 
developing infant.
