The Mesozoic Sea

ancient sea creatures frolic in the waves
(Smithsonian Institution)

Before large mammals, reptiles ruled the ocean. During the Mesozoic, the time period when dinosaurs roamed on land, many of these large creatures were the top predators in the ocean food chain and fed on fish, cephalopods, bivalves, and even one another. Pterosaurs, flying reptiles, were also a key part to Mesozoic ocean ecosystems because they also ate fish.