Classification: Dinosauria – Saurischia – Sauropoda – Gravisauria - Eusauropoda - Neosauropoda - Diplodocoidea – Flagellicaudata – Diplodocidae
Time Period: Late Jurassic
Location: North America
Diet: Herbivore
The North American Barosaurus was one of the largest sauropods of the savannah-like Morrison Formation during the Tithonian Stage of the Late Jurassic. While most individuals were already larger-than-life, clocking in at 82-89 feet in length and weighing between twelve and twenty tons, at least one specimen may have reached up to 157 feet in length with a 49-foot neck. Barosaurus was closely related to the more popular Diplodocus, though it had some significant differences: it had a longer neck, a shorter tail, and its skeleton was less robust than its contemporaneous cousin. Additionally, Barosaurus’ cervical vertebrae were designed in such a way that it had a lot of side-to-side flexibility at the cost of up-and-down flexibility. This indicates it ate by sweeping its neck in crescent-shaped arcs over the low foliage, which would’ve been a perfect feeding method for the savannah-like conditions of the Morrison Formation. While its neck and skull have not been recovered, it’s assumed that, due to its close relationship with Diplodocus, Barosaurus had a whip-like tail and a skull with an elongated, sloping snout with peg-like teeth.
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