Brachiosaurus vs Deinonychus

A detailed side-by-side comparison of Brachiosaurus and Deinonychus, covering size, diet, classification, geologic period, and discovery history.

Side-by-Side Comparison

Property Brachiosaurus Deinonychus
Scientific Name Brachiosaurus altithorax Deinonychus antirrhopus
Classification Sauropoda Dromaeosauridae
Period Jurassic Late Cretaceous Early
Diet Herbivore Carnivore
Length 26.0 m 3.4 m
Height 13.0 m 0.9 m
Weight 56.0 t 73 kg
Discovery Year 1903 1969
Discovery Location Grand River Valley, Colorado, USA Montana, USA
Named By Elmer S. Riggs John Ostrom

Size Comparison

Brachiosaurus 26.0 m

about as long as 5 cars end-to-end

Deinonychus 3.4 m

about the size of a human adult

Weight Comparison

Brachiosaurus 56.0 t

heavier than 9 African elephants

Deinonychus 73 kg

about 1 adult humans

Timeline Comparison

Brachiosaurus
161.5 Mya Jurassic Late (Mesozoic) 145.0 Mya
Deinonychus
145.0 Mya Cretaceous Early (Mesozoic) 100.5 Mya

Diet Comparison

Brachiosaurus

Herbivore

Brachiosaurus was a plant-eater, feeding on vegetation like ferns, conifers, and cycads.

Deinonychus

Carnivore

Deinonychus was a meat-eating predator, hunting other animals for food.

Classification Comparison

Brachiosaurus

Clade: Sauropodomorpha

Group: Sauropoda

(Lizard feet)

Deinonychus

Clade: Theropoda

Group: Dromaeosauridae

(Raptors)

Did You Know?

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Brachiosaurus was about 7.6x longer than Deinonychus.

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Brachiosaurus weighed roughly 767x more than Deinonychus.

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Brachiosaurus was a herbivore while Deinonychus was a carnivore.

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Brachiosaurus lived during the Jurassic Late while Deinonychus lived during the Cretaceous Early, separated by roughly 0 million years.

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Brachiosaurus was discovered 66 years earlier, in 1903.

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Brachiosaurus belonged to Sauropoda while Deinonychus belonged to Dromaeosauridae.

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