Atlasaurus
Atlasaurus imelakei
Pronounced:
at-las-Saw-rus
Diet:
herbivore
(plant-eater)
Name Means:
"Atlas Lizard"
Length:
46 ft. (14 m)
Height:
15 ft. (4.5 m)
Weight:
unknown
Time:
Middle Jurassic
- 164 mya
Fossil remains for this Dinosaur
have been found in Africa
Atlasaurus was an
African sauropod
that was much
smaller than the
huge
Brachiosaurus
Since it was
discovered very
recently, scientists
still know very
little about its
life. We do know
that it was a
plant-eating
dinosaur with a long
neck and front legs
that were longer
than its back legs.
Since this dinosaur
was only about half
the size of its huge
American cousin, it
is thought that the
African environment
could not have
supported the giant
dinosaurs seen in
other parts of the
world. However,
scientists think
that Atlasaurus may
have eventually
grown as large as
Brachiosaurus
because it is
believed that
sauropods may have
continued to grow
throughout their
lives.
Compared to
Brachiosaurus
Atlasaurus had a
larger skull, longer
tail and somewhat
shorter neck. It
fits an important
niche in the
sauropod family
lineage and further
study of this fairly
complete specimen
should provide
interesting results. |
