恐龍卡第 1186 張，共 2 027 張

Mikadocephalus

名字的意思： “Mikado head, from the Japanese word for emperor and the Greek word for head”1

吃：肉魚龍類三疊紀中期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Mikadocephalus was a big, fish-shaped marine reptile that swam in warm seas during the Triassic Period. It was not a dinosaur, but a kind of ichthyosaur, with a long snout full of teeth for catching fish and squid.1 4

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

247 到 237 百萬年前4

三疊紀中期

化石發現地

Fossils have been found in Switzerland and on Svalbard, an island group north of Norway.1 4

長度

5.065 到 8 m (17 到 26 ft)2 3

最高速度

時速約 39 公里（24 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 8 隻狗從鼻子接到尾巴一樣長跟 44 根香蕉頭尾相接一樣長能在 4.6 秒內游完一座大泳池（50 公尺）

Mikadocephalus 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)

Mikadocephalus 時速約 39 公里 (24 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

Mikadocephalus is known from a skull that was so crushed and jumbled that it looked like a game of pick-up sticks, which is how it got its name.1

It lived about 247 to 237 million years ago, during the Middle Triassic, making it one of the earliest big ichthyosaurs.4

Its fossils were found in the Besano Formation, which was once a warm, shallow lagoon with poor oxygen at the bottom.1

Scientists think Mikadocephalus might actually be the same animal as another ichthyosaur called Besanosaurus, because they look very similar.1

The species name gracilirostris means 'slender snout', because its jaws were long and thin.1

Mikadocephalus 的 AI 繪圖 — 這是電腦根據科學家目前的知識，用 AI 畫出 Mikadocephalus 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 Mikadocephalus 最常被問的問題

?How big was Mikadocephalus?

About 8 metres (26 feet) long, based on the largest known specimen of Besanosaurus, which scientists think is the same animal.2

?What did Mikadocephalus eat?

It ate small fish and squid, catching them with its long, slender snout and tiny pointed teeth.2

?Is Mikadocephalus a dinosaur?

No, it is not a dinosaur. It is a kind of ichthyosaur, a fish-shaped marine reptile that lived in the sea.1

?Why is it called Mikadocephalus?

Its name means 'Mikado head,' because its skull was so crushed and jumbled that it looked like a game of pick-up sticks.1

迷思破解王

迷思： Some people think Mikadocephalus was a dinosaur because it lived long ago and had a long snout.

真相： Mikadocephalus was an ichthyosaur, a marine reptile that lived in the sea. Ichthyosaurs are not dinosaurs.1

給恐龍專家

學名: Mikadocephalus
命名者: Maisch and Matzke 19974
類群: 魚龍類
科 / 演化支: Guanlingsauridae4
分類: Ichthyosauria > Ichthyosauromorpha4
岩石的年代: 247 到 237 百萬年 ()4
岩層: Monte San Giorgio bituminous shales, Tschermakfjellet4
國家: 瑞士, 斯瓦巴4
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 2 筆4
發現: The skull was found in Switzerland, in the Besano Formation, and was named by Michael Maisch and Andreas Matzke in 1997.1
仍有爭議: Scientists still debate whether Mikadocephalus is its own species or the same as Besanosaurus, since the skull is so crushed.1