Liopleurodon, the "Smooth-Sided Teeth," was a genus of marine reptiles, specifically of short- necked plesiosaurs called pliosaurs. Liopleurodon's long skull was  approximately one-fifth of its total  length; therefore, the largest known specimen, with a head length of 126 centimeters, was gigantic at over six meters long. Although this  is certainly a large size, it stands  in stark contrast to BBC's popular  but erroneous depiction of it as a  25-meter-long monster. Liopleurodon  had four strong, paddle-like limbs  that propelled it forward quickly,  a feature that is common amongst plesiosaurs. With the great  acceleration provided by its flippers and a keen sense of smell,  Liopleurodon may have been an ambush predator.  With fossils found all across  Europe, Liopleurodon prowled the waves of the middle- to late- Jurassic island continent. As an  apex predator, it struck fear into  the hearts of any creature that may  have crossed its path. It was a  piscivore and a carnivore with its  diet including giant Jurassic  fishes, sharks, ichthyosaurs, and even other plesiosaurs, like  Cryptoclidus, which have been found preserved with Liopleurodon bite  marks.