恐龍卡第 1298 張，共 2 027 張

Nyctosaurus

名字的意思： “night lizard”1

吃：魚飛行爬蟲類白堊紀早期到白堊紀晚期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Nyctosaurus was a flying reptile that lived over a shallow sea. It had huge wings like an albatross and a giant antler-like crest on its head. It spent almost all its time in the air, rarely landing.1

趣味小知識：翼龍在恐龍頭上飛來飛去，但牠們是恐龍的親戚，不是恐龍喔。

生存年代

110 到 66 百萬年前4

白堊紀早期到白堊紀晚期

化石發現地

Kansas, USA, and possibly Brazil and Mexico1 4

長度

0.376 m (1.2 ft)1

翼展

2 到 2.9 m (6.6 到 9.5 ft)1

體重

1.86 kg 到 4.01 kg (4 到 9 lb)1 2

最高速度

時速約 55 公里（34 英里）

飛行, 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？

牠有多重？

跟 1 隻家貓一樣重

大約跟一隻家貓一樣重跟 33 根香蕉一樣重跟 12 塊積木排成一排一樣長能在 6.9 秒內飛越一整座足球場

Nyctosaurus 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)

Nyctosaurus 時速約 55 公里 (34 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

Nyctosaurus had no claws on its wings, so it could not climb trees or cliffs. It probably spent almost its whole life flying.1

Some Nyctosaurus had a huge antler-like crest on its head, bigger than its skull.1

Nyctosaurus was a close relative of Pteranodon, but much smaller. Its wingspan was only about 2 to 3 meters (6.6 to 9.8 feet).1

It lived about 85 to 84.5 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous. That is a short time compared to its relative Pteranodon.1

Nyctosaurus fossils are found in rocks that were once the bottom of a shallow sea called the Western Interior Seaway.1

Scientists think Nyctosaurus flew like a modern albatross, soaring long distances without flapping much.1

The first Nyctosaurus fossil was named by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1876. He first thought it was a species of Pteranodon.1

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

?What did Nyctosaurus eat?

It ate fish. Nyctosaurus was a piscivore (fish-eater) that soared over the sea and caught fish with its long, pointed beak.1 3

?How big was Nyctosaurus?

Nyctosaurus was a mid-sized pterosaur with a wingspan of about 2 to 3 metres (6.6 to 9.8 feet). Its body was about 38 centimetres (1.2 feet) long and it weighed around 1.9 kilograms (4.1 pounds).1

?Did Nyctosaurus have teeth?

No, Nyctosaurus had no teeth. Its jaws were long, pointed and beak-like, perfect for catching fish.3

?Why did Nyctosaurus have a crest?

Scientists think the huge antler-like crest was used for display, like a peacock's tail, to attract mates or show off. It was not used for flying.1

?Could Nyctosaurus walk on land?

It probably could not walk well. Nyctosaurus had no claws on its wings and its hand bones were very reduced, so it likely spent almost its whole life flying and rarely landed.1 3

?Is Nyctosaurus a dinosaur?

No, Nyctosaurus is a pterosaur, a flying reptile that lived at the same time as dinosaurs but is not a dinosaur itself.1

迷思破解王

迷思： Nyctosaurus is a dinosaur.

真相： Nyctosaurus is a pterosaur, a flying reptile that is not a dinosaur.1

給恐龍專家

學名: Nyctosaurus
命名者: (Marsh 1876)4
類群: 飛行爬蟲類
科 / 演化支: Pterodactyloidea4
分類: Pterosauria > Pterodactyloidea4
岩石的年代: 110 到 66 百萬年 (Albian / Maastrichtian)4
岩層: Niobrara, Tlayúa, Gramame4
國家: 美國, 墨西哥, 巴西4
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 10 筆4
又名: Nyctodactylus （舊名稱現在也算作同一種動物）4
發現: The first Nyctosaurus fossils were found in Kansas, USA, and described by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1876. He originally called it Pteranodon gracilis, but later gave it its own name Nyctosaurus.1
仍有爭議: Scientists are not sure how many species of Nyctosaurus really existed. Some species may actually belong to other pterosaur groups.1