This list of ichthyosauromorphs is a comprehensive listing of all genera that have ever been included in the clade Ichthyosauromorpha, excluding purely vernacular terms. The list includes all commonly accepted genera, but also genera that are now considered invalid, doubtful (nomen dubium), or were not formally published (nomen nudum), as well as junior synonyms of more established names, and genera that are no longer considered ichthyopterygian. Non-ichthyosaur ichthyopterygians shall be noted as such. This list contains genera.
Scope and terminology
There is no official, canonical list of ichthyosauromorph genera but one of the most thorough attempts can be found at the "Ichthyosauromorpha" section of Mikko Haaramo's Phylogeny Archive.
Naming conventions and terminology follow the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. Technical terms used include: Junior synonym: A name which describes the same taxon as a previously published name. If two or more genera are formally designated and the type specimens are later assigned to the same genus, the first to be published (in chronological order) is the senior synonym, and all other instances are junior synonyms. Senior synonyms are generally used, except by special decision of the ICZN, but junior synonyms cannot be used again, even if deprecated. Junior synonymy is often subjective, unless the genera described were both based on the same type specimen. Nomen nudum (Latin for "naked name"): A name that has appeared in print but has not yet been formally published by the standards of the ICZN. Nomina nuda (the plural form) are invalid, and are therefore not italicized as a proper generic name would be. If the name is later formally published, that name is no longer a nomen nudum and will be italicized on this list. Often, the formally published name will differ from any nomina nuda that describe the same specimen. In this case, these nomina nuda will be deleted from this list in favor of the published name. Preoccupied name: A name that is formally published, but which has already been used for another taxon. This second use is invalid (as are all subsequent uses) and the name must be replaced. As preoccupied names are not valid generic names, they will also go unitalicized on this list. Nomen dubium (Latin for "dubious name"): A name describing a fossil with no unique diagnostic features. As this can be an extremely subjective and controversial designation, this term is not used on this list.
The list GenusAuthorsYearStatusAgeLocationNotesImages Acamptonectes Fischer et al. 2012 Valid Early Cretaceous () Possessed an unusually rigid trunk, which would make the extent of its lateral locomotion very limited Actiosaurus Sauvage 1883 Dubious Late Triassic While originally described as a dinosaur and later reinterpreted as an ichthyosaur, it may actually represent a choristodere Acuetzpalin Barrientos-Lara & Alvarado-Ortega 2020 Valid Late Jurassic Known from a partial limbless skeleton with a well-preserved skull Aegirosaurus Bardet & Fernández 2000 Valid Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Four of its caudal vertebrae made its tail to bend roughly 45° downwards Anhuisaurus Chen 1985 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Preoccupied by lizard genus Anhuisaurus (Hou, 1974). Junior synonym of Chaohusaurus Argovisaurus Miedema et al. 2024 Valid Middle Jurassic May have preserved traumatic injuries based on abnormalities in its skeleton Arthropterygius Maxwell 2010 Valid Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous? Its rostrum was relatively short and robust Athabascasaurus Druckenmiller & Maxwell 2010 Valid Early Cretaceous The holotype was discovered at an oilsand mine Auroroborealia Zverkov et al. 2021 Valid Late Triassic Suggested to be a small-bodied animal although its exact ontogenetic stage is uncertain due to fragmentary remains Baisesaurus Ren et al. 2022 Valid Early Triassic Very similar to Utatsusaurus Baptanodon Marsh 1880 Valid Late Jurassic Formerly erroneously thought to have been toothless Barracudasauroides Maisch 2010 Valid Middle Triassic Only known from a partial skeleton originally referred to Mixosaurus Barracudasaurus Jiang et al. 2005 Dubious Middle Triassic Its premaxillary teeth were rounded in cross-section BesanosaurusDal Sasso, Cristiano and Giovanni Pinna, 1996. Besanosaurus leptorhynchus n. gen. n. sp., a new shastasaurid ichthyosaur from the Middle Triassic of Besano (Lombardy, N. Italy). Paleontologia Lombarda, Nuova seire Volume IV: 1-23. Dal Sasso & Pinna 1996 Valid Middle Triassic May have had strong jaw muscles as indicated by its skull bones Brachypterygius von Huene 1922 Valid Late Jurassic () Closely related to Platypterygius and Caypullisaurus Californosaurus Kuhn 1934 Valid Middle Triassic to Late Triassic Originally named as a species of Shastasaurus Callawayia Maische & Matzke 2000 Valid Late Triassic The morphology of its scapulae was more similar to those of Jurassic ichthyosaurs than to other Triassic taxa Cartorhynchus Motani et al. 2014 Valid Early Triassic Represents a sudden diversification of marine reptiles that occurred shortly after the Permian-Triassic extinction event Catutosaurus Fernández et al. 2021 Valid Late Jurassic Represented by at least three fragmentary specimens Caypullisaurus Fernández 1997 Valid Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous Each of its forelimbs contained ten digits Chacaicosaurus Fernández 1994 Valid Middle Jurassic Inconsistent in phylogenetic placement Chaohusaurus Young & Dong 1972 Valid Early Triassic One specimen preserves the remains of two embryos and a neonate Chensaurus Mazin et al. 1991 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Junior synonym of Chaohusaurus Chonespondylus Leidy 1868 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Junior synonym of Cymbospondylus Contectopalatus Maische & Matzke 1998 Jr. synonym? N/A N/A Possibly a junior synonym of Phalarodon Cryopterygius Druckenmiller et al. 2012 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Junior synonym of Undorosaurus Cymbospondylus Leidy 1868 Valid Early Triassic to Middle Triassic Lacked a dorsal fin and fluked tail, which would suggest it probably swam by wriggling its body from side to side like a modern sea snake Dearcmhara Brusatte et al. 2015 Valid Early Jurassic to Middle Jurassic () The first ichthyosaur discovered in Scotland Delphinosaurus Eichwald 1853 Dubious Early Cretaceous to Late Cretaceous Originally mistakenly believed to be an amphibian Eretmorhipis Chen et al. 2015 Valid Early Triassic Exhibited a suite of unusual features, such as relatively small eyes, a platypus-like snout, and plates on its back similar to those of stegosaurs Eternauta Campos et al. 2025 Valid Late Jurassic May have relied on deep-diving while hunting its prey as suggested by its preserved scleral ring Eurhinosaurus Abel 1909 Valid Early Jurassic () Its upper jaw was twice as long as the lower jaw, convergent with billfish Eurypterygius Jaekel 1904 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Junior synonym of Ichthyosaurus Excalibosaurus McGowan 1986 Valid Early Jurassic () May have been a rare component of its environment as only two skeletons are known Fernatator Massare et al. 2025 Valid Early Jurassic The most complete ichthyosaur known from the Early Jurassic of North America Gadusaurus Pratas e Souza et al. 2025 Valid Early Jurassic Although the majority of the cranial sutures are completely fused, which is often seen in adult ichthyosaurs, the midline suture is not fused, which would indicate the holotype belonged to either a juvenile or subadult individual Gengasaurus Paparella et al. 2017 Valid Late Jurassic Before its formal description, it had been nicknamed the "Genga ichthyosaur" Grendelius McGowan 1976 Valid Late Jurassic () Once considered to be synonymous with Brachypterygius Grippia Wiman 1930 Valid Early Triassic Members of this genus may have swum by moving their tails laterally, similar to an eel Guanlingsaurus Yin et al. 2000 Valid Late Triassic Has been suggested to be an Asian species of Shastasaurus Guizhouichthyosaurus Cao & Luo 2000 Valid Middle Triassic to Late Triassic Two morphotypes of skulls and limbs are known, which could be an indication of sexual dimorphism Gulosaurus Cuthbertson et al. 2013 Valid Early Triassic Originally thought to belong to either Grippia or Parvinatator Hauffiopteryx Maisch 2008 Valid Early Jurassic () Distinguished by its short, very thin snout Himalayasaurus Dong 1972 Valid Late Triassic Similarly to Thalattoarchon, its teeth possessed distinctive cutting edges Hudsonelpidia McGowan 1995 Valid Late Triassic The holotype specimen is almost complete Hupehsuchus Young 1972 Valid Early Triassic Has been suggested to be a filter feeder, similar to baleen whales, although a 2025 review argues that it most likely fed like a pelican Ichthyosaurus De la Beche & Conybeare 1821 Valid Early Jurassic () The first ichthyosaur genus to be validly named and described Ichthyotitan Lomax et al. 2024 Valid Late Triassic () The largest ichthyosaur and marine reptile currently known Isfjordosaurus Motani 1999 Valid Early Triassic Named as a species of Pessopteryx before being assigned to its own genus Jabalisaurus Barrientos-Lara & Alvarado-Ortega 2021 Valid Late Jurassic Known from two species, J. meztli and J. tethyensis, which were originally believed to be specimens of Ophthalmosaurus and Aegirosaurus, respectively Janusaurus Roberts et al. 2014 Valid Late Jurassic Has been suggested to be synonymous with Arthropterygius although this was disputed by a subsequent study Kazakhstanosaurus Bolatovna & Makustovich 2021 Valid Late Jurassic Two species are known Keilhauia Delsett et al. 2017 Valid Early Cretaceous Can be distinguished from other ophthalmosaurids by the wide top end of the ilium and exceptionally short ischiopubis compared to the femur Kyhytysuka Cortés et al. 2021 Valid Early Cretaceous Formerly thought to represent a species of Platypterygius, but it was assigned to its own genus due to morphological differences Leninia Fischer et al. 2013 Valid Early Cretaceous One of the latest-surviving ophthalmosaurines Lentamanusuchus Qiao, Iijima & Liu 2025 Valid Early Triassic Possessed unusually wide autopodia compared to other hupehsuchians Leptocheirus Merriam 1903 Jr. synonym N/A N/A Junior synonym of Toretocnemus Leptonectes McGowan 1996 Valid Late Triassic to Early Jurassic () One referred specimen reported from Switzerland has been found to actually belong to the related Hauffiopteryx