Fake "Lizard"

Nothosaurs are a type of Sauropoda, mainly found in Triassic marine strata in South my country and Europe.

Fantasy name

Their Chinese translation sounds nice and dreamy, but in the early days they actually had a less nice name - Niezilong. This is because its scientific name actually means "fake lizard", and in Greek it also means "illegitimate child".

Streamlined body

Nothosaurus is one of the more famous ancient marine reptiles. There are many species of them, and the body sizes of different Nothosauruses vary greatly, but they all have relatively similar shapes, with slender bodies, flat and wide heads that are relatively small relative to the body, long necks and streamlined bodies. Scientists speculate that their lifestyle should be very similar to that of modern pinnipeds (such as sea lions, seals, etc.), and they are moderately adapted to aquatic life.

Life in the water

The body structure of Noxosaurus indicates that they should have a certain ability to crawl slowly on land, and propel their bodies forward in the water by swinging their two pairs of flippers back and forth and up and down alternately. Their webbed limbs can help them swim in the water, and their long and flexible necks swing left and right to help them catch prey. They generally live on fish and mollusks in shallow sea areas, and their fine and interlaced nail-like teeth can help them hold food firmly.

Disappearance and extinction

With the emergence of more evolved plesiosaurs that were better adapted to the marine environment, the position of the nososaurs was gradually replaced until they completely disappeared from Earth's history in the late Triassic period. Although they were not active on the Earth stage for a long time, they can still reflect to a certain extent the prosperity of the oceans in the Mesozoic Triassic period.