Few Jurassic sea creatures were quite as feared as the intimidating predator called Liopleurodon. These large hunters patrolled the Jurassic seas, striking fear into the hearts of any creatures that came across it. While its size is grossly exaggerated in the series, it doesn't make Liopleurodon any less terrifying, still being around the size of a full grown great white shark. Liopleurodon made the Jurassic seas much less inviting, and far less pleasant to live in.

Basic info

Meaning of name: Liopleurodon means "smooth-sided tooth".

Time of existence: Liopleurodon lived during the end of the middle Jurassic and the late Jurassic, 166.1 million to 139.8 million years ago.

Diet: Liopleurodon was a very voracious carnivore. Not only did they feed on fish and squid, but sharks, small icthyosaurs, and even relatives like plesiosaurs made up their diet. It is possible Liopleurodon would also cannibalize juveniles, though this is mostly just speculation. It is possible they may have also eaten small, island-hopping dinosaurs.

An Ophthalmosaurus wisely gives Liopleurodon a wire berth

Threats: For the most part, Liopleurodon had no creature to fear. However, when injured, sharks like Hybodus may have scavenged off of them, though this most likely didn't end in fatality. What would indeed end in a fatality, however, would be being beached. Liopleurodon's own weight would end up suffocating it, and it would be nothing but food for the scavengers. Like other animals, they were not immune to the tropical storms that often ravaged the land.

Size: In the Walking with... series, Liopleurodon was depicted as being over 70 feet long. This is absolutely false, as in reality, Liopleurodon only grew from 16 to 23 feet long.

While not as big as it is depicted, Liopleurodon was still an awe-inspiring animal

Attributes: Liopleurodon's teeth were specially designed to hold its prey so they could not escape its grasp. They also were experts at ambush hunting, as unlike most other sea reptiles, they were not fast enough to pursue their prey. Their four flippers were strong enough to push them through the sea, using alternating flaps to swim in their kingdom.

Appearances in the Walking with... series

Liopleurodon appears in the show's opening, swimming towards the camera. On the Walking with Dinosaurs' Cruel Sea DVD menu, the silhouette of Liopleurodon can be seen, and while not the main creature, it makes sense due to arguably being far more memorable than the Ophthalmosaurus.

Liopleurodon in the opening

Episode 1-New Blood

Liopleurodon is briefly seen in the opening synopsis of the series, where it is seen emerging from the depths and swimming towards the surface of the water.

Episode 2-Time of the Titans

Liopleurodon briefly appears in the post credits scene, emerging from the depths to get air.

Episode 3-Cruel Sea

Liopleurodon plays a big role in the third episode, arguably being even more memorable than the main star. In the beginning of the episode, we see a dinosaur looking into the ocean, and are told that the most fearsome Jurassic predator is watching its prey. Moments later, a Liopleurodon bursts its head from the water and grabs the dinosaur, dragging it under the water as its fins disappear back into the water.

A Liopleurodon snatches a Eustreptospondylus off a sandbar

As a female Ophthalmosaurus is giving birth, if one looks in the background, a massive silhouette can be seen. Looking closely will reveal it to be Liopleurodon lurking in the background.

Liopleurodon can be seen in the background of this image

Not too long after this moment, a female Ophthalmosaurus is shown struggling to give birth, which attracts some sharks. However, as they move in for the kill, a giant creature lurking in the gloom scatters them. This is of course revealed to be Liopleurodon, who emerges from the depths and opens his massive jaws, grabbing the struggling Ophthalmosaurus and biting her in half, consuming the front half. After this gruesome attack, the giant growls and begins to swim away, the flesh of the icthyosaur still stuck in his teeth. We are told that he may very well be over 100 years old, and that he too had detected the mother's distress, using his strong directional sense of smell to pinpoint where she was. His three meter long flippers propel the giant back to the gloom of the dark water. Liopleurodon is alluded to a couple of times throughout the episode, as a Eustreptospondylus swims to another island in the Liopleurodon's turf. It is also said that the plesiosaur Cryptoclidus haul themselves onto land specifically to avoid Liopleurodon during the night. Liopleurodon appears about three months after the main Ophthalmosaurus pups were born, where he is seen getting a massive gulp of air, before beginning to swim down to the depths and set up an ambush, this time on an unsuspecting Hybodus, as Liopleurodon is a shark eater. However, a female Liopleurodon arrives in his territory, and the bull emerges from the depths. The two begin to circle each other, before the male bites down on one of the female's back flippers. She retreats, but is trailed by a large group of sharks as she leaves a trail of blood. Later on, a massive tropical storm strikes the islands, and kills many of the creatures living there. One of these unfortunate creatures is the Liopleurodon, who was disoriented in the murky waters and beached himself. As he lies in agony growling, a bunch of Eustreptospondylus arrive, but are wary, as the giant's jaws could still crush them. As one approaches, the Liopleurodon slightly turns his head and growls, possibly trying to bite him, but gives up. Over time, the carnivore's weight suffocates him, and he finally dies on the beach, where the dinosaurs begin to feed on him. As they feed, a flock of Rhamphorhynchus arrive, being ready to scavenge the carcass. We are told that the giant sea reptiles will continue to exist until the dinosaurs go extinct as the Liopleurodon is fed upon by the many beach-combers.

Episode 4-Giant of the Skies

In the fourth episode, as the Ornithocheirus flies over the Atlantic Ocean to get to Europe, a sea reptile using the exact same model as Liopleurodon can be seen. Although it was confirmed to be a creature called Plesiopleurodon, the model is identicle to the Liopleurodon from Cruel Sea, and it is merely reused stock footage, the only difference being the black and white pattern is swapped for a dull gray. Due to its pointless inclusion and reuse of footage, Plesiopleurodon is often regarded as the worst creature featured in the entire Walking with... series. Stranger still, in the U.S. dub of the episode, the creature is instead directly stated to be a Liopleurodon, despite it being extinct by the Cretaceous.

Chased by Sea Monsters

Episode 1-Dangerous Seas

Liopleurodon briefly appears in the opening synopsis of the series, where it is seen swimming towards Nigel Marven and representing the 2nd deadliest sea. Liopleurodon also briefly appears on the time map before the Ordivician and Triassic segments.

Episode 2-Into the Jaws of Death

Liopleurodon can briefly be seen on the time map before the Eocene segment of the episode.

Episode 3-To Hell...and Back?

Liopleurodon is first seen in the opening recap of the episode, where one is seen swimming at the camera. Liopleurodon also serves as the main focus of the Jurassic segment of the episode. It is first seen on the time map before said segment, although it is almost entirely obscured by a Diplodocus. After discovering a sick Leedsicthys being attacked by a group of smaller marine predators, Nigel tracks it using a special sonar, and soon, on the radar, the giant silhouette of a Liopleurodon is seen approaching the fish. Nigel quickly instructs one of his crewmates to lower a camera into the water so they can see it. After putting the camera a bit deeper, they see a Liopleurodon swimming around the Leedsicthys, apparently having killed it. However, the giant is startled by the camera and swims away. Due to the danger of diving with such giant beasts, Nigel and his crew developed a smell suit with putricine in a bottle to release in case the Liopleurodon get too curious, as their acute sense of smell would drive them away. However, before they perfected it, Nigel shows us some filmed trials in shallower waters with young Liopleurodon, using a dummy and putting squid in the suit. In the first experiment, they used a chemical used to keep sharks away. We see a young Liopleurodon approaches it, and the chemical is released. The chemical doesn't have the desired effect, as a second youngster comes out of nowhere and rips the dummy from the ground by its head, the first Liopleurodon quickly following. They then show the second test, where the two Liopleurodon once again decide to try their luck at an easy meal, but this time the dummy releases putricine, detering the first youngster. The second one, however, ends up smacking its head into the dummy, with Nigel jokingly stating he hopes the reptiles don't do that to him. The other Liopleurodon does swim away, however, showing that the chemical does work. Night falls, and we see Nigel gearing up for a dive, as a Liopleurodon, or perhaps a pair, have returned to the Leedsicthys carcass. Both Nigel and the cameraman have a smell suit, and they dive in. They are met with the sight of two massive adult Liopleurodon feeding on the dead Leedsicthys, charging towards it and tearing off chunks of flesh from the carcass.

Liopleurodon in Chased by Sea Monsters

Their short necks are also packed with muscle, allowing them to tear chunks of flesh easily. Nigel decides to move in closer, as the Liopleurodon are completely fixated on their food. However, one of the Liopleurodon ends up getting curious and approaches Nigel. Luckily, the smell suit's chemicals deter the giant, and it decides to return to the carcass. As they continue feeding, Nigel exits the water, knowing that it is best to leave now. Liopleurodon's final appearance is on the time map before the Cretaceous segment of the episode.