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early long-neck
Coloradisaurus
Say it like this: “ko-lo-RAHD-i-SAWR-us”
Coloradisaurus brevis
Coloradisaurus ate plants and walked on two legs. It lived in the Late Triassic. Bones have been found in Argentina.
- When
- Late Triassic (Norian) · roughly 227.3 to 205.7 million years ago
- Named in
- 1978 · Bonaparte, J. F.
- Hip height
- 1.6 m · 5 ft
- Length
- 3 m · 10 ft
- Weight
- 70 kg · 154 lb
- Found in
- Argentina · Los Colorados
- Food and walking
- Herbivore · Two legs
- Kind
- early long-neck · Sauropodomorph
- Family branch
- Massospondylidae
The story in short
Coloradisaurus was formally named in 1978 by J. F. Bonaparte. The name means “los Colorados lizard.”
Fossils referred to Coloradisaurus date to the Late Triassic (Norian), roughly 227.3 to 205.7 million years ago. Finds come from Argentina, including the Los Colorados Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on two legs.
Published estimates put Coloradisaurus at a length near 3 m, hips about 1.6 m high, and a body mass around 70 kg.
On the family tree it sits in Massospondylidae, among the early long-necked dinosaurs.
Close relatives
Adeopapposaurus
Adeopapposaurus mognai
Early Jurassic (Hettangian–Toarcian) · roughly 201.4 to 174.7 million years ago
Fulengia
Fulengia youngi
Early Jurassic (Sinemurian) · roughly 199.5 to 192.9 million years ago
Glacialisaurus
Glacialisaurus hammeri
Early Jurassic (Sinemurian · Pliensbachian) · roughly 199.5 to 184.2 million years ago