Alamosaurus
Alamosaurus was a titanosaur, a gigantic plant-eating dinosaur from the Upper Cretaceous period, about 73 million to 65 million years ago.
| Alamosaurus Temporal range: Upper Cretaceous
| |
|---|---|
| |
| Restored skeletons of Alamosaurus and Tyrannosaurus at Perot Museum | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Class: | |
| Superorder: | |
| Order: | |
| Suborder: | |
| Infraorder: | |
| Family: | |
| Subfamily: | |
| Genus: | Alamosaurus
|
Alamosaurus was a long-necked, whip-tailed dinosaur. It was about 69 feet (21 m) long and weighed perhaps 33 tons (30000 kg). Fossils have been found in New Mexico, Texas, and Utah. Fossils include fragmentary skeletons (and no skulls).
Skeletal elements of Alamosaurus are among the most common Late Cretaceous dinosaur fossils found in the American Southwest and are now used to define the fauna of that time and place. There was a climate change in this area, it became drier, and this caused changes in the fauna. Thomas M. Lehman describes it as "the abrupt reemergence of a fauna with a superficially 'Jurassic' aspect".[1] These faunas are dominated by Alamosaurus and feature abundant Quetzalcoatlus in Texas.[1] The Alamosaurus – Quetzalcoatlus association probably represent semi-arid inland plains.[1]p201
Alamosaurus Media
Size comparison, showing the scale of three Alamosaurus specimens.
Isolated caudal vertebra of Alamosaurus sanjuanensis from the Naashoibito member of the Kirtland Formation, New Mexico
Hypothetical restoration of Alamosaurus sanjuanensis, based on Scott Hartman's skeletal restoration [1] with speculative quills and hypothetical osteoderms' position and osteoderms' layout loosely based on this interpretation, which is based on the work of Vidal et. al., 2015 [2].
Holotype scapula and paratype ischium
Alamosaurus quarry in 2013 compared with 1937, North Horn Formation, North Horn Mountain.
Restored Alamosaurus skeletal mount at the Perot Museum.
Taken in panoramic mode
Alamosaurus, autor - Bogdanov,2006
