Betsy's Plesiosaur, Nichollsia borealis Nichollsia borealis, one
of the oldest and most complete plesiosaur fossils recovered in
North America, and the oldest yet discovered from the Cretaceous
Period, was uncovered in a Syncrude Canada Ltd. mine near Fort
McMurray, Alberta, in 1994. Two U of Calgary scientists, Dr.
Patrick Druckenmiller and Dr. Anthony Russell have named the
2.6m long plesiosaur Nichollsia borealis in memory of the late
Elizabeth (Betsy) Nicholls, former curator at the Royal Tyrrell
Museum of Palaeontology. Nicholls was a renowned palaeontologist
who is credited with transforming the understanding of
prehistoric ocean life by describing the largest-ever marine
reptile, a 23-metre-long ichthyosaur, discovered in northern
British Columbia in 1999. Elizabeth (Betsy) Nicholls conducting
field work in northeastern B.C. Photo:Rolex Awards/Tomas
Bertelsen. “We chose this name because Betsy was a key player in
the study of marine reptiles, a mentor to me, a former student
of Tony, and a great person