恐龍卡第 1033 張，共 2 027 張

Leptocleidus

名字的意思： “slender clavicle”1

吃：肉蛇頸龍類白堊紀早期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Leptocleidus was a small plesiosaur that swam in shallow seas and rivers during the Early Cretaceous. It had a long neck, a short body, and four flippers to paddle through the water. Unlike many other plesiosaurs, it lived in lagoons and even brackish or fresh water.1

趣味小知識：這種海生爬蟲類在海裡游泳的時候，恐龍正在陸地上走路。大家都叫牠們恐龍，但牠們其實是爬蟲類的另一個分支。

生存年代

143 到 100 百萬年前4

白堊紀早期

化石發現地

England (Sussex, Isle of Wight), South Africa (Cape Province), and Western Australia (Kalbarri)1

長度

最多 3 m (9.8 ft)1

最高速度

時速約 28 公里（17 英里）

游泳, 估計值

牠生活在什麼時候？

三疊紀

侏羅紀

白堊紀

2 億 5200 萬年前20114566，小行星撞地球

牠有多大？

牠有多長？

跟 3 隻狗從鼻子接到尾巴一樣長跟 17 根香蕉頭尾相接一樣長能在 6.4 秒內游完一座大泳池（50 公尺）

Leptocleidus 跟「你」比起來有多大？

只是在你的瀏覽器裡算算數學。什麼都不會被儲存或傳送出去。

牠有多快？

走路的人 時速約 5 公里 (3 mph)

騎腳踏車的小朋友 時速約 12 公里 (7 mph)

Leptocleidus 時速約 28 公里 (17 mph)

一匹飛奔的馬 時速約 65 公里 (40 mph)

一隻獵豹 時速約 100 公里 (62 mph)

酷東西

趣味知識

Leptocleidus had about 21 teeth on each side of its upper jaw and around 35 teeth on each side of its lower jaw.1

Its skull was triangle-shaped with a crest running from the tip of the nose to the nasal region.1

Unlike many plesiosaurs, Leptocleidus lived in shallow lagoons and may have entered brackish or fresh water, like river mouths.1

Scientists think Leptocleidus moved into fresh water to escape larger plesiosaurs and pliosaurs.1

The name Leptocleidus comes from Greek words meaning 'slender clavicle', referring to its thin collarbone.1

Leptocleidus had large clavicles and interclavicle bones but small shoulder blades, similar to the early Jurassic Rhomaleosaurus.1

A specimen from the Isle of Wight, once thought to be Leptocleidus, was later named a separate genus, Vectocleidus, in 2012.1

Leptocleidus 的 AI 繪圖 — 這是電腦根據科學家目前的知識，用 AI 畫出 Leptocleidus 可能的樣子。這只是猜測：真正的動物可能長得不一樣，也沒有人知道牠真正的顏色。

你們都在問

關於 Leptocleidus 最常被問的問題

?How big was Leptocleidus?

Leptocleidus was small for a plesiosaur, measuring up to 3 metres (9.8 feet) long. One species, Leptocleidus superstes, was even smaller at about 1.5 metres (5 feet).1 3

?Was Leptocleidus a dinosaur?

No, Leptocleidus was not a dinosaur. It was a plesiosaur, a type of extinct marine reptile that lived in the sea.1 3

?What did Leptocleidus eat?

Scientists are not sure exactly what Leptocleidus ate, but its many sharp teeth suggest it ate fish or other small sea creatures. It likely hunted in shallow waters.1 3

?Where did Leptocleidus live?

Leptocleidus lived in shallow lagoons and sometimes entered brackish or fresh water, like river mouths. Its fossils have been found in England, South Africa, and Australia.1 3

給恐龍專家

學名: Leptocleidus
命名者: Andrews 19224
類群: 蛇頸龍類
科 / 演化支: Leptocleididae4
分類: Plesiosauria > Sauropterygia4
岩石的年代: 143 到 100 百萬年 (Berriasian / Albian)4
岩層: Murderong Shale, Bulldog Shale, Weald Clay4
國家: 澳洲, 英國, 南非4
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 7 筆4
又名: Peyerus （舊名稱現在也算作同一種動物）4
發現: Leptocleidus was named by Charles William Andrews in 1922 based on a partial skeleton and skull from the Weald Clay of Berwick, Sussex, England.4 1
仍有爭議: Scientists debate whether Leptocleidus belongs within the group Rhomaleosauridae or in its own separate clade called Leptocleididae.2