Zapalasaurus

Say it like this: “ZAP-a-la-SOR-us”

Zapalasaurus bonapartei

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

Quiz me on Zapalasaurus

When: Early Cretaceous (Barremian · Aptian) · roughly 125.8 to 113.2 million years ago
Named in: 2006 · Salgado, L.; Carvalho, I. de S.; Garrido, A. C.
Hip height: 2.2 m · 7 ft
Length: 9 m · 30 ft
Weight: 2 tonnes
Found in: Argentina · La Amarga
Food and walking: Herbivore · Four legs
Kind: long-neck giant · Sauropod
Family branch: Rebbachisauridae

The story in short

The genus Zapalasaurus dates to 2006, the year L. Salgado and colleagues described it. The name honors a person tied to the fossil or its study.

Fossils referred to Zapalasaurus date to the Early Cretaceous (Barremian · Aptian), roughly 125.8 to 113.2 million years ago. Finds come from Argentina, including the La Amarga Formation. It was a herbivore and walked on four legs.

Published estimates put Zapalasaurus at a length near 9 m, hips about 2.2 m high, and a body mass around 2 tonnes.

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

Close relatives

Agustinia

Agustinia ligabuei

Early Cretaceous (Albian) · roughly 113.2 to 100.5 million years ago

Amazonsaurus

Amazonsaurus maranhensis

Early Cretaceous (Aptian · Albian) · roughly 121.4 to 100.5 million years ago

Astigmasaura

Astigmasaura genuflexa

Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian · Turonian) · roughly 100.5 to 89.8 million years ago