Ichthyosaurus
Water · 20 maps
Overview
The Ichthyosaurus is a small aquatic carnivore commonly used for underwater exploration and light combat. It passively tames by feeding, making it accessible without knockout risk. Players often tame it for fast ocean traversal and scouting deep biomes. It can be airlifted by Quetzal or Karkinos for fast deployment.
It does not gather resources while ridden but excels as a mobile water mount with low torpor buildup.
Spawn Locations
20 mapsIchthyosaurus spawns in ocean and deep-ocean biomes. It is very common and appears across 19 ARK maps. Look for green zones on the spawn map for the highest density.
Each shape is a real spawn volume. Click for exact chance and zone info.
Taming is done passively by feeding. The best food is Simple Kibble, which provides the fastest taming. Raw Mutton also works but is significantly slower. About 5 Simple Kibble are needed. The process takes around 3 minutes with no Narcotics needed. Use the calculator below for your settings.
| Food | Qty | Time | Effectiveness |
|---|---|---|---|
 Simple KibbleBest | 3 | 1:25 | 74 Lvl (224) |
 Raw Mutton | 6 | 2:04 | 74 Lvl (224) |
 Raw Prime Meat | 7 | 2:29 | 74 Lvl (224) |
 Cooked Lamb Chop | 10 | 3:43 | 73 Lvl (223) |
 Raw Meat | 20 | 7:50 | 69 Lvl (219) |
| +6 more in calculator→ | |||
Drops & Harvest Resources
Killing an Ichthyosaurus yields Raw Meat. The Pick is the best tool for maximizing Raw Meat harvest.
| Resource |  Pick |  Hatchet |
|---|---|---|
| 60%~11~8 hits | 40%~7~6 hits |
Estimates based on game-extracted data (weights, quantities, harvest multipliers, damage type chains). Each harvest event independently rolls each resource - higher weight = higher drop chance. Actual yields vary with RNG.
Damage Resistances
Ichthyosaurus has a +120% weakness to Instant HurtDinos, making it highly vulnerable to certain explosive and instant-damage sources. It also takes +100% more damage from spike walls, which are very effective in base defense. Conversely, it is immune to Mining Drill Harvest damage and takes -50% from melee attacks with projectile impact effects. Level Health and Melee Damage.
Kill XP
Wild Kill (1.25×)4 base × 15.9 level × 4 × 1.25× wild kill × 1× server
Server Settings(Game.ini)
Official servers use non-1× defaults; the values above already reflect official rates.
| Stat | Base (Lv.1) | Wild +/Lv | Tamed +/Lv |
|---|---|---|---|
 Health | 275.0 | +13.75 | +1.00% |
 Stamina | 300.0 | +60.00 | +4.00% |
 Torpidity | 300.0 | +18.00 | +0.00% |
 Food | 1000.0 | +100.00 | +2.00% |
 Weight | 250.0 | +5.00 | +0.80% |
 Melee Damage Multiplier | 100.0% | +5.00% | +5.00% |
 Speed Multiplier | 100.0% | +0.00% | +1.50% |
Hitbox Multipliers
The head has a damage multiplier of 1.5x, making it the optimal target for faster knockouts. Focus attacks on the head when stunning.
Can Damage
Can break Thatch and Wood. Build at least in Stone.
Thatch
Wood
Stone
Metal
Tek| Attack | Base | Thatch | Wood | Stone | Metal | Tek |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attack 1Carnivore Medium | 15 | 82.5 | 45.0 | — | — | — |
Numbers reflect base melee at level 1, 100% TE, no imprint. The damage calculator lets you scale by melee %, server multipliers, and pick a specific structure for exact hit counts.
Tools & Guides
Ichthyosaurus Tips & Tricks
It can be carried by flyers like Quetzal for rapid ocean deployment.
Its low torpor makes it easier to knock out than larger dinos.
Taming via passive feed avoids the need for Tranq Arrows or Narcotics.
It takes double damage from spike walls, so avoid placing these near taming areas.
This page covers the Ichthyosaurus's stats, taming, breeding, harvest, and combat data. For detailed planning, use the taming calculator, breeding calculator, and spawn map tools available below.