恐龍卡第 1581 張，共 2 027 張

Sarabosaurus

名字的意思： “desert mirage lizard”1

吃：肉滄龍類白堊紀晚期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Sarabosaurus was a small, ancient marine lizard that swam in a warm sea that once covered the middle of North America. It lived about 94 million years ago, during the time of the dinosaurs, and is the oldest mosasaur ever found in that region.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

94 到 90 百萬年前3

白堊紀晚期

化石發現地

Tropic Shale of Utah, USA, in the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument area1 2

長度

3 m (9.8 ft)1

最高速度

時速約 33 公里（21 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 5.5 秒內游完一座大泳池（50 公尺）

Sarabosaurus 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)

Sarabosaurus 時速約 33 公里 (21 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

Sarabosaurus is the oldest mosasaur known from the Western Interior Seaway, dating to about 93.7 million years ago.1

The only known specimen was a mature adult, only 3 to 4 years old when it died.1

Its name comes from the Arabic word 'sarab' meaning desert mirage, because the sea it lived in has long since vanished.1

Sarabosaurus had a unique blood supply to its brain, different from most lizards, similar to how whales evolved.2

The species name 'dahli' honors Steve Dahl, a volunteer who helped collect fossils at the monument.1

Scientists used micro-CT scanning to study the braincase and map the blood vessels of Sarabosaurus.2

Sarabosaurus was about 3 metres (9.8 feet) long, small compared to later giant mosasaurs.1

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

給恐龍專家

學名: Sarabosaurus
命名者: Polcyn et al. 20233
類群: 滄龍類
科 / 演化支: Mosasauridae3
分類: Mosasauroidea3
岩石的年代: 94 到 90 百萬年 (Turonian)3
岩層: Tropic Shale3
國家: 美國3
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 1 筆3
發現: The fossil was discovered in March 2012 by volunteer Scott Richardson in the gray shale of Utah. It was named in 2023 by Michael Polcyn and colleagues, with the species named after volunteer Steve Dahl.1 2
仍有爭議: Scientists are still debating exactly how Sarabosaurus is related to other early mosasaurs, especially its position in the family tree.1