Apatosaurus

Apatosaurus ajax

Apatosaurus, formerly known as Brontosaurus (now a separate genus), was a massive long-necked sauropod. Its tail may have been used as a whip for defense. It swallowed stones (gastroliths) to help grind plant material in its stomach.

Physical Description

Measurement	Value	Human Scale
ความยาว	22.0 m	about as long as 4 cars end-to-end
Height	4.5 m	—
น้ำหนัก	22.7 t	about the weight of 3.8 elephants

Diet & Feeding

Herbivore

Apatosaurus was a plant-eating dinosaur. Herbivores typically fed on ferns, cycads, conifers, and other vegetation available during their era. Many herbivorous dinosaurs developed specialized teeth and digestive systems for processing tough plant material.

Time Period

Jurassic Late Mesozoic Era

Apatosaurus lived during the Jurassic Late period of the Mesozoic Era, approximately 161.5 to 145.0 million years ago.

One of the most iconic periods for dinosaurs. Giant sauropods like Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus roamed alongside predators like Allosaurus. Archaeopteryx, the earliest known bird, appeared. The Morrison Formation preserves an extraordinary fossil record from this time.

Discovery & Naming

ตั้งชื่อโดย	Othniel Charles Marsh
ปีที่ค้นพบ	1877
สถานที่ค้นพบ	Morrison Formation, Colorado, USA

การจำแนกประเภท

Dinosauria → Saurischia → Sauropodomorpha → Sauropoda → Apatosaurus

Lizard feet

The giant long-necked herbivores, reaching lengths over 30 meters and weights exceeding 70 tonnes. They dominated terrestrial ecosystems for over 100 million years.

Size Comparison

At 22.0 meters long and 22700.0 kg, Apatosaurus was about as long as 4 cars end-to-end and about the weight of 3.8 elephants.

Other dinosaurs from the same period:

Caihong juji Ambopteryx longibrachium Amphicoelias altus Maraapunisaurus fragillimus Giraffatitan brancai Marshosaurus

Quick Facts

การจำแนกประเภท	Sauropoda
ยุคธรณีวิทยา	Jurassic Late
อาหาร	Herbivore
ขนาด	22.0m long, 4.5m tall, 22.7t