Volkheimeria

Say it like this: “VOLK-hie-MEER-ee-a”

Volkheimeria chubutensis

Volkheimeria ate plants and walked on four legs. It lived in the Early Jurassic. Bones have been found in Argentina.

Quiz me on Volkheimeria

When: Early Jurassic (Toarcian) · roughly 184.2 to 174.7 million years ago
Named in: 1979 · Bonaparte, J. F.
Hip height: 2 m · 7 ft
Length: 8.7 m · 29 ft
Weight: Not established
Found in: Argentina · Cañadón Asfalto
Food and walking: Herbivore · Four legs
Kind: long-neck giant · Sauropod
Family branch: Gravisauria

The story in short

In 1979, J. F. Bonaparte published the name Volkheimeria. The name honors a person tied to the fossil or its study.

Fossils referred to Volkheimeria date to the Early Jurassic (Toarcian), roughly 184.2 to 174.7 million years ago. Finds come from Argentina, including the Cañadón Asfalto Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.

Published estimates put Volkheimeria at a length near 8.7 m and hips about 2 m high.

On the family tree it sits in Gravisauria, among the sauropod dinosaurs.

Close relatives

Rhoetosaurus

Rhoetosaurus brownei

Late Jurassic (Oxfordian) · roughly 161.5 to 154.8 million years ago

Sanpasaurus

Sanpasaurus yaoi

Early Jurassic (Toarcian) · roughly 184.2 to 174.7 million years ago

Tazoudasaurus

Tazoudasaurus naimi

Early Jurassic (Pliensbachian · Toarcian) · roughly 192.9 to 174.7 million years ago