Sachicasaurus
Sachicasaurus was a huge marine reptile that swam in the warm seas of what is now Colombia. It was a pliosaur, a type of short-necked plesiosaur, and one of the biggest predators of its time. With a skull longer than a person, it used its sharp teeth to catch fish and other sea creatures.21
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Fun facts
Sachicasaurus had a very short lower jaw joint, with only 17 to 18 teeth on each side, while other pliosaurs had 25 to 40.2
The only known skeleton is almost complete, but it is missing the tip of the tail and some fin bones.2
Its skull was more than 2 metres (6.6 feet) long, as big as a small car.1
Sachicasaurus lived about 130 to 120 million years ago, during the Early Cretaceous period.2
The fossil was found in an old gypsum quarry, and an ammonite shell was found in the rocks just above it, helping to date the animal.1
Sachicasaurus is closely related to another Colombian pliosaur, 'Kronosaurus' boyacensis, and may belong to the same group.1
Most asked questions about Sachicasaurus
?How big was Sachicasaurus?
About 10 to 10.35 metres (32.8 to 34.0 feet) long and weighed 10.3 to 12.8 metric tons (11.4 to 14.1 short tons).2
?What did Sachicasaurus eat?
It ate fish and other sea creatures, using its sharp teeth to catch them.2
?When did Sachicasaurus live?
It lived about 130 to 120 million years ago, during the Early Cretaceous period.2
?Where was Sachicasaurus found?
Its fossil was found in an old gypsum quarry near Sáchica, Boyacá, Colombia.21
?Is Sachicasaurus a dinosaur?
No, it is a pliosaur, a type of marine reptile called a plesiosaur, not a dinosaur.2
?How fast could Sachicasaurus swim?
Nobody knows for sure, but as a pliosaur with flippers, it was probably a fast swimmer.2
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For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Sachicasaurus
- Named by
- Páramo-Fonseca et al. 20183
- Group
- Plesiosaurs
- Family / clade
- Pliosauridae3
- Classification
- Plesiosauria > Pliosauridae > Sauropterygia3
- Age of the rocks
- 126 to 113 million years (Barremian / Aptian)3
- Rock formations
- Paja3
- Countries
- Colombia3
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
- Discovery
- The fossil was found in 2013 by a team from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia and the oil company ECOPETROL. It was named Sachicasaurus vitae in 2018 by Páramo-Fonseca and colleagues.13
- Still debated
- Scientists are not sure if Sachicasaurus is a separate genus or if it should be placed in the same genus as 'Kronosaurus' boyacensis.1
Where the facts come from
- A new large Pliosaurid from the Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of Sáchica, Boyacá, Colombia (dinodata.de)
- Sachicasaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
- Sachicasaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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