恐龍卡第 1176 張，共 2 027 張

Meyerasaurus

吃：肉蛇頸龍類侏羅紀早期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Meyerasaurus was a fierce marine reptile that swam in the seas during the time of the dinosaurs. It was not a dinosaur, but a plesiosaur with a big head and strong jaws. It hunted fish and other sea creatures.1 2

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

184 到 183 百萬年前3

侏羅紀早期

化石發現地

Holzmaden, Baden-Württemberg, Germany2

長度

3.35 m (11 ft)2

最高速度

時速約 29 公里（18 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 19 根香蕉頭尾相接一樣長能在 6.2 秒內游完一座大泳池（50 公尺）

Meyerasaurus 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)

Meyerasaurus 時速約 29 公里 (18 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

Meyerasaurus was about 3.35 metres long, with a skull that was only 37 centimetres long. That means its head was quite small compared to its body.2

It had a short and wide snout, and its humerus (upper arm bone) was curved and longer than its femur (thigh bone).2

Meyerasaurus lived about 184 to 183 million years ago, during the Early Jurassic period.1

The only known fossil of Meyerasaurus was damaged during a bombing raid on Stuttgart in 1944, but it was rescued and repaired.2

Meyerasaurus belongs to a group called Rhomaleosauridae, which were plesiosaurs with short necks and big heads.2

Its teeth had fine ridges on them, called lingual striations, which helped it grip slippery prey.2

Meyerasaurus 的 AI 繪圖 — 這是電腦根據科學家目前的知識，用 AI 畫出 Meyerasaurus 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。

迷思破解王

迷思： Some people think Meyerasaurus was a dinosaur because it lived during the age of dinosaurs.

真相： Meyerasaurus was a marine reptile, not a dinosaur. Dinosaurs lived on land and had different body features.2

給恐龍專家

學名: Meyerasaurus
命名者: Smith and Vincent 20103
類群: 蛇頸龍類
科 / 演化支: Rhomaleosauridae3
分類: Plesiosauria > Sauropterygia3
岩石的年代: 184 到 183 百萬年 (Toarcian)3
岩層: Posidonia Shale3
國家: 德國3
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 1 筆3
發現: The fossil was first described by Eberhard Fraas in 1910, but it was given its own genus name Meyerasaurus by Smith and Vincent in 2010. The specimen was found in Holzmaden, Germany.2 1
仍有爭議: Scientists are still debating whether Rhomaleosauridae is a separate family, because different studies give different results.2