恐龍卡第 2005 張，共 2 027 張

Zarafasaura

名字的意思： “giraffe lizard of the sea”1

吃：肉蛇頸龍類白堊紀晚期嚴格來說不是恐龍

Zarafasaura was a plesiosaur, a marine reptile that swam in the warm seas of the Late Cretaceous. It was a small elasmosaur, about as long as a car, and it used its long neck to snap up fish and squid.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

72 到 66 百萬年前3

白堊紀晚期

化石發現地

Ouled Abdoun Basin, Morocco1

長度

3 到 4 m (9.8 到 13 ft)1

體重

90 kg 到 110 kg (198 到 243 lb)1

最高速度

時速約 27 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？

牠有多重？

跟 6 隻狗一樣重

跟 4 隻狗從鼻子接到尾巴一樣長跟 22 根香蕉頭尾相接一樣長跟 22 顆西瓜一樣重跟 6 個幼兒園小朋友一樣重跟 3 個小學生一樣重能在 6.7 秒內游完一座大泳池（50 公尺）

Zarafasaura 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)

Zarafasaura 時速約 27 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

Zarafasaura means 'giraffe lizard' in Arabic, because local people thought the long-necked fossils looked like giraffes.1

It was a small plesiosaur, only about 3 to 4 metres long, much smaller than its giant cousins like Elasmosaurus.1

The first fossil of Zarafasaura was just a skull and jaw, found in phosphate mines in Morocco.1

In 2013, a more complete skeleton was discovered, showing its flippers and backbone for the first time.1

Zarafasaura lived about 72 to 66 million years ago, right at the end of the Age of Dinosaurs.2

A specimen of Zarafasaura was almost sold at auction in Paris for €450,000, but the sale was stopped and it was sent back to Morocco.1

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

?Was Zarafasaura a dinosaur?

No, Zarafasaura was a plesiosaur, a marine reptile that lived in the sea, not a dinosaur.1

?How big was Zarafasaura?

About 3 to 4 metres long and weighed roughly 100 kilograms, about the size of a large dog.1

?What did Zarafasaura eat?

It likely ate fish and squid, using its long neck to snap them up in the warm Cretaceous seas.1

?Where was Zarafasaura found?

Its fossils were discovered in phosphate mines in the Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco, North Africa.1

給恐龍專家

學名: Zarafasaura
命名者: Vincent et al. 20113
類群: 蛇頸龍類
科 / 演化支: Elasmosauridae3
分類: Plesiosauria > Elasmosauridae > Sauropterygia3
岩石的年代: 72 到 66 百萬年 (Maastrichtian)3
岩層: Couche III3
國家: 摩洛哥3
化石紀錄: The Paleobiology Database 收錄 1 筆3
發現: Zarafasaura was named in 2011 by a team of scientists led by Peggy Vincent. The first fossil, a skull and jaw, was found in the phosphate mines of the Ouled Abdoun Basin in Morocco.1
仍有爭議: Scientists are still debating exactly how Zarafasaura is related to other plesiosaurs, and whether it had any special features in its flippers or body.1