Dinosaurs A to Z
Diplodocidae

Supersaurus

"super lizard"

Generic sauropod body-plan outline
You 1.8 m (5.9 ft) tall
Supersaurus 40 m (131 ft) long
as long as 23 people standing fingertip to fingertip
generic sauropod body plan, scaled to length — not a silhouette of Supersaurus
Length
40 m (131 ft)
Period
Late Jurassic (153–145 Mya)
Place
North America · Portugal · Wyoming, USA · Colorado, USA
Food
Herbivore
Clade
Diplodocidae Dinosauria Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Sauropoda Whip-tailed sauropods: Diplodocus, Apatosaurus, Brontosaurus.

Supersaurus (meaning “super lizard”) is a genus of diplodocid sauropod dinosaur that lived in North America during the Late Jurassic period. The type species, S. vivianae, was first discovered by Vivian Jones of Delta, Colorado, in the middle Morrison Formation of Colorado in 1972. The fossil remains came from the Brushy Basin Member of the formation, dating between 153 and 145 million years ago. It is among the longest dinosaurs ever discovered, with the three known specimens reaching 33 – 40 m in length, with the largest individual possibly exceeding 40 m in size. Mass estimates for the WDC and BYU specimens tend to be around 35 – 44 MT in body mass. A potential second species, S. lourinhanensis (Dinheirosaurus), is known from Portugal and has been dated to a similar time.

What we know

  • Named by Jensen, 1985.
  • Body length estimated at about 40 m.
  • Fossils found in North America and Portugal.

What we guess

The reconstruction notes for Supersaurus — soft tissue, color, behavior — haven't been written up yet. Only the recorded basics above are filled in so far.