Grippia

Grippia is a genus of early ichthyopterygian, an extinct group of reptiles that resembled dolphins. Its only species is Grippia longirostris. It was a relatively small ichthyopterygian, measuring around long. Fossil remains from Svalbard from the specimen SVT 203 were originally assigned to G. longirostris but are now thought to have belonged to a non-ichthyopterygian diapsid related to Helveticosaurus. Fossils have been found along the coasts of Greenland, China, Japan, Norway, and Canada (Sulfur Mountain Formation); of Early Triassic age. No complete skeletons have ever been found. However, well-preserved remains have been found, with the most notable ones including: The Marine Ironstone found in Agardh Bay Norway. This specimen consists of a partial skull fossil; however, it was lost during World War II and presumably destroyed. Previously, the Vega Phroso Siltstone Member of the Sulphur Mountain Formation in British Columbia. This specimen consists of a well preserved forelimb, several ribs, and a single centrum. However, it has now been reclassified as Gulosaurus helmi, a close relative of Grippia. The first G. longirostris skull was found in 1929. Many palaeontologists believe it was the most complete specimen ever found, however, it was destroyed in a bombing raid on Germany in WWII. Grippia longirostris was an entirely marine species and is considered to be the most basal example of Ichthyopterygia. G. longirostris measured in at 1-1.5m (3.3-4.9 feet) in length making it the smallest species within the superorder Ichthyopterygia. Other definitive features of G. longirostris include the arrangement of carpals and metacarpals that constitute the forelimbs and the morphology of the skull. Members of this species swam via lateral movements of their tail similar to that of a modern-day eel. The skeletal structure of G. longirostris has been documented, especially the forelimbs by Ryosuke Motani in 1998 and the skull by Ryosuke Motani in 2000. These studies involved modern documentation and research of previously discovered specimens.