NYC - AMNH: Apatosaurus - Hall of Dinosaurs
Apatosaurus, previously known as Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaurs that lived about 140 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period. They were some of the largest land animals that ever existed, about 4.5 metres (15 feet) tall at the hips, with a length of up to 21 m (70 feet) and a mass up to 35 metric tonnes (40 tons). Their name means 'deceptive lizard', so-named because the chevron bones were like those of Mosasaurus (Greek apatelos or apatelios meaning 'deceptive' and sauros meaning 'lizard').
The cervical vertebrae and the bones in the legs were bigger and heavier than that of Diplodocus although, like Diplodocus, Apatosaurus also had both a long neck and a long tail. The tail was held above the ground during normal locomotion. Like most sauropods, Apatosaurus had only a single large claw on each forelimb. The skull was first identified in 1975, a century after this dinosaur acquired its name.
NYC - AMNH: Apatosaurus - Hall of Dinosaurs
Apatosaurus, previously known as Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaurs that lived about 140 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period. They were some of the largest land animals that ever existed, about 4.5 metres (15 feet) tall at the hips, with a length of up to 21 m (70 feet) and a mass up to 35 metric tonnes (40 tons). Their name means 'deceptive lizard', so-named because the chevron bones were like those of Mosasaurus (Greek apatelos or apatelios meaning 'deceptive' and sauros meaning 'lizard').
The cervical vertebrae and the bones in the legs were bigger and heavier than that of Diplodocus although, like Diplodocus, Apatosaurus also had both a long neck and a long tail. The tail was held above the ground during normal locomotion. Like most sauropods, Apatosaurus had only a single large claw on each forelimb. The skull was first identified in 1975, a century after this dinosaur acquired its name.