Dino card No. 0136 of 2,015

Apatosaurus

Say it: uh-PAT-oh-SORE-us

Name means: “deceptive lizard”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksLate Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Apatosaurus was a giant, long-necked plant eater that lived about 150 million years ago. It was one of the biggest land animals ever, with a huge body and a very long tail.2 1

Lived

158 to 143 million years ago3

Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

USA, in the Morrison Formation spanning states like Wyoming, Colorado, and Montana1 3

Food

Plants1 3

Length

21 to 23 m1 2

estimates vary

Weight

up to 41 tonnes2

Artist's life restoration of Apatosaurus — How Apatosaurus may have looked, by Connor Ashbridge. CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons. Scientists still argue about colours and details.

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

Apatosaurus had a long, whiplike tail that might have been used like a whip.1

Young Apatosaurus grew very fast, reaching full adult size in about 10 years.1

Its huge size helped protect it from smaller predators, and living in herds gave extra safety.1

Apatosaurus lived alongside other famous dinosaurs like Stegosaurus, Diplodocus, and Allosaurus.1

The environment where Apatosaurus lived was semi-arid, with forests, rivers, and floodplains, and had distinct wet and dry seasons.1

Apatosaurus weighed as much as five adult elephants.2

Myth buster

Myth: Brontosaurus is the same dinosaur as Apatosaurus.

Truth: For over 100 years, scientists thought Brontosaurus and Apatosaurus were the same. But a 2015 study suggests they are separate, closely related dinosaurs.1 2

For dino experts

Scientific name: Apatosaurus
Named by: Marsh 18773
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Diplodocidae3
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Diplodocoidea3
Age of the rocks: 158 to 143 million years ()3
Rock formations: Morrison3
Countries: USA3
Fossil records: 67 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Apatosaurus was named by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1877. He chose the name because some of the fossil bones were confusing and seemed to resemble those of a sea reptile.1 3
Still debated: Scientists still debate whether Apatosaurus and Brontosaurus are separate genera or the same.2 1

Where the facts come from

Apatosaurus | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
Apatosaurus | Size, Length, & Facts | Britannica (britannica.com)
Apatosaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at hello@dinowiki.app and we will fix it.