Simoliophis

{{Short description|Extinct genus of snakes}} {{Automatic taxobox | fossil_range = {{fossilrange|99.6|93.9}}Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian) | taxon = Simoliophis | authority = Sauvage, 1880 | type_species = {{extinct}}'''''Simoliophis rochebrunei''''' | type_species_authority = Sauvage, 1880 | subdivision_ranks = Other species | subdivision = {{Species list | {{extinct}}Simoliophis libycu | Nessov et al., 1998 }} | subdivision_ref = <ref name="gbif"/> | synonyms = {{Genus list | Symoliophis | Rochebrune, 1880 | Symoliophis | Sauvage, 1880 }} | synonyms_ref = <ref name="gbif">{{Cite GBIF|id=4576070|taxon=''Simoliophis''|access-date=2025-03-21}}</ref> }}

'''''Simoliophis''''' is a genus of extinct marine snake from the Cretaceous period. It is a member of the Simoliophiidae family. Fossils are known from Morocco, France and Spain.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Nessov |first1=Alexandrovich |last2=Zhegallo |first2=Vladimir Illijch |last3=Averianov |first3=Alexander Olegovich |date=1998-07-01 |title=A new locality of Late Cretaceous snakes, mammals and other vertebrates in Africa (western Libya) |url=https://doi.org/10.1016/s0753-3969(99)80002-0 |journal=Annales de Paléontologie |volume=84 |issue=3–4 |pages=265–274 |doi=10.1016/s0753-3969(99)80002-0 |issn=0753-3969|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Vullo |first1=Romain |last2=Bernárdez |first2=Enrique |last3=Buscalioni |first3=Angela D. |date=2009-05-01 |title=Vertebrates from the middle?–late Cenomanian La Cabaña Formation (Asturias, northern Spain): Palaeoenvironmental and palaeobiogeographic implications |url=https://doi.org/10.1016/j.palaeo.2009.03.004 |journal=Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology |volume=276 |issue=1–4 |pages=120–129 |doi=10.1016/j.palaeo.2009.03.004 |issn=0031-0182|url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite journal |last1=Rage |first1=Jean-Claude |last2=Vullo |first2=Romain |last3=Néraudeau |first3=Didier |date=2016-03-01 |title=The mid-Cretaceous snake ''Simoliophis rochebrunei'' Sauvage, 1880 (Squamata: Ophidia) from its type area (Charentes, southwestern France): Redescription, distribution, and palaeoecology |url=https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195667115300896 |journal=Cretaceous Research |volume=58 |pages=234–253 |doi=10.1016/j.cretres.2015.10.010 |issn=0195-6671|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

==Description== The type species, ''Simoliophis rochebrunei'', is distinguished by a set of vertebral characteristics, including short and robust vertebrae with a small neural canal and a shallow interzygapophyseal constriction. The species exhibits pachyostosis, particularly in the mid-trunk region and the anterior portion of the posterior trunk. Ribs attributed to ''S. rochebrunei'' are pachyostotic at their proximal ends and decrease in thickness distally. Some specimens exhibit a slight curvature, while others are more robustly curved near the proximal end. The anatomical adaptations of ''Simoliophis'' suggest a highly pachyostotic, marine-affiliated snake adapted for slow swimming in shallow waters. Its morphology indicates a lifestyle of prolonged, shallow dives rather than active, fast swimming. A fragment of skull bone bearing three tooth sockets has been tentatively assigned to ''S. rochebrunei''. While its attribution is not definitive, the fossil was recovered from a locality where ''Simoliophis'' is abundant, making its association plausible.<ref name=":0" />

==References== {{Reflist}}

Category:Cretaceous snakes Category:Sea snakes Category:Fossils of France Category:Fossils of Libya Category:Fossils of Morocco Category:Fossils of Spain Category:Taxa named by Henri Émile Sauvage Category:Taxa described in 1880 Category:Alethinophidia Category:Prehistoric reptile genera