Sauropods: the largest animals to ever walk the Earth
Long necks, long tails, and a scale barely believable
Quick facts
- When
- Late Jurassic, about 152 to 145 million years ago
- Brachiosaurus
- About 22 m long, roughly 46,900 kg (possibly an underestimate)
- Diplodocus
- About 26 m long, roughly 15,000 kg
- Discovery
- Brachiosaurus found in Colorado, 1900, by Elmer S. Riggs; named 1903
What happened
The sauropods, four-legged plant-eaters with long necks, small heads, and long tails, produced the largest land animals in Earth's history, and several of the best-known lived in the Late Jurassic, about 152 to 145 million years ago, in what is now the United States. Brachiosaurus grew to roughly 22 metres long and weighed around 46,900 kilograms; the Natural History Museum notes that figure may even be an underestimate, since some experts think the known fossil belonged to an animal that was not yet fully grown. Diplodocus grew even longer, around 26 metres, though on a comparatively lighter frame at about 15,000 kilograms. The first Brachiosaurus remains were dug up in Colorado in 1900 by the Chicago paleontologist Elmer S. Riggs, who did not formally name the find until 1903, by which point it was, in his words, the largest dinosaur ever discovered.
Why it matters
Sauropods are the clearest answer to the question of how large a land animal can get, and later relatives grew larger still: the titanosaur Argentinosaurus, from the Cretaceous, is estimated at about 35 metres and 80,000 kilograms. Their scale is also a puzzle in its own right, since supporting that much body on land, without water to help bear the weight, pushed animal biology to its limits.
How we know
The Natural History Museum's records for Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus give their Late Jurassic age, their lengths and weights, and Brachiosaurus's discovery history through Elmer S. Riggs in 1900 and its naming in 1903 as the largest dinosaur then known. The museum's sauropod overview defines the group by its long neck, small head, four legs, and long tail.
Sources
- Natural History Museum, London. Brachiosaurus (Natural History Museum Dino Directory) (2024) · Reputable sourcenhm.ac.uk · The domain "nhm.ac.uk" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- Natural History Museum, London. Diplodocus (Natural History Museum Dino Directory) (2024) · Reputable sourcenhm.ac.uk · The domain "nhm.ac.uk" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
- U.S. National Park Service. Diplodocus longus (U.S. National Park Service) · Reputable sourcenps.gov · The domain "nps.gov" is on our Reputable source registry. · Link is live and its text matches the event's key terms (Jul 2026)
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