Spitrasaurus
Spitrasaurus was a long-necked marine reptile that swam in the Jurassic seas. It had an incredibly long neck with at least 60 vertebrae, more than most other plesiosaurs. It lived in the cold waters near what is now Svalbard, Norway.1
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Spitrasaurus had at least 60 neck bones (cervical vertebrae), which is more than most other Jurassic plesiosaurs. Only some Cretaceous elasmosaurids had more.1
The neck bones of Spitrasaurus had a prominent ridge on the side, a feature not seen in many related plesiosaurs like Djupedalia or Kimmerosaurus.1
Two species of Spitrasaurus have been named: S. wensaasi and S. larseni. They differ in the shape of their neck bones and ribs.1
The first specimen of Spitrasaurus (S. wensaasi) was a juvenile, because its vertebrae were not fully fused. It was preserved lying on its back in black mudstone.1
Spitrasaurus lived about 149 to 143 million years ago, during the Tithonian stage of the Jurassic period. Its fossils were found in the Slottsmøya Member of the Agardhfjellet Formation.21
The name Spitrasaurus honors Spitsbergen Travel, a local travel company that helped support the research.1

Vir dino-kenners
- Wetenskaplike naam
- Spitrasaurus
- Benoem deur
- Knutsen et al. 20122
- Groep
- Plesiosourusse
- Familie / klade
- Cryptoclididae2
- Klassifikasie
- Plesiosauria > Sauropterygia2
- Ouderdom van die rotse
- 149 tot 143 miljoen jaar (Tithonian)2
- Rotsformasies
- Agardhfjellet2
- Lande
- Noorweë2
- Fossielrekords
- 2 in The Paleobiology Database2
- Ontdekking
- Spitrasaurus was named in 2012 by Espen Knutsen, Patrick Druckenmiller, and Jørn Hurum. The fossils were found on the north slope of Janusfjellet mountain on Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway.21
- Steeds omstrede
- Scientists are not sure exactly how long Spitrasaurus was, because no complete skeleton has been found. The known specimens are missing parts of the tail and skull.1
Waar die feite vandaan kom
- Two new species of long-necked plesiosaurians (Reptilia: Sauropterygia) from the Upper Jurassic (Middle Volgian) Agardhfjellet Formation of central Spitsbergen (geologi.no)
- Spitrasaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): ouderdom, plekke, rotsformasies, klassifikasie.
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