Mosasaurinae

Mosasaurines Temporal range: Late Cretaceous, 92–66 Ma PreꞒ Ꞓ O S D C P T J K Pg N
Mounted skeleton of Mosasaurus conodon, Minnesota Science Museum
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Reptilia
Order:	Squamata
Clade:	†Mosasauria
Family:	†Mosasauridae
Subfamily:	†Mosasaurinae Gervais, 1853
Type species
†Mosasaurus hoffmannii Mantell, 1829
Genera
†Amphekepubis[1] †Clidastes †Dallasaurus †Gnathomortis †Goronyosaurus? †Jormungandr †Kourisodon †Liodon †Megapterygius[2] †Plesiotylosaurus †Prognathodon †Stelladens †Thalassotitan †Globidensini †Carinodens †Globidens †Harranasaurus[3] †Igdamanosaurus †Xenodens †Mosasaurini †Bentiabasaurus †Eremiasaurus †Plotosaurus †Moanasaurus †Mosasaurus

The Mosasaurinae are a subfamily of mosasaurs, a diverse group of Late Cretaceous marine squamates. Members of the subfamily are informally and collectively known as "mosasaurines" and their fossils have been recovered from every continent except for South America.^[4]

The lineage first appears in the Turonian and thrived until the K-Pg mass extinction at the end of the Maastrichtian. They ranged in size from some of the smallest known mosasaurs (Carinodens, 3–3.5 meters), to medium-sized taxa (Clidastes, 6+ meters), to the largest of the mosasaurs (Mosasaurus hoffmannii) potentially reaching about 13 m in length. Many genera of mosasaurines were either piscivorous or generalists, preying on fish and other marine reptiles, but one lineage, the Globidensini, evolved specialized crushing teeth, adapting to a diet of ammonites and/or marine turtles.

Though represented by relatively small forms throughout the Turonian and Santonian, such as Clidastes, the lineage diversified during the Campanian and had by the Maastrichtian grown into the most diverse and species-rich mosasaur subfamily.^[5]

The etymology of the group derives from the genus Mosasaurus (Latin Mosa = "Meuse river" + Greek sauros = "lizard").