Brontosaurus was relegated to scientific history. The fossils were reassigned to Apatosaurus. Due to the rules of scientific naming – the first name published gets priority.
Adult Brontosaurus are estimated to have weighed up to 15 tonnes. They measured up to 22 metres long. In 1877 Marsh named Apatosaurus ajax. It was a long-necked and long-tailed dinosaur. It was found in the Morrison Formation in Colorado, USA.
No, they haven’t conducted mad DNA cloning. They built a big new family tree of long-necked dinosaurs. They argue Brontosaurus is distinctive enough to be classified separately.
In 1905 the world’s first long-necked dinosaur went on display. It was wrongly labelled in the press as Brontosaurus. Thanks to this simple mistake Brontosaurus seems to have stuck in people’s imaginations.
Apatosaurus does not seem to have been lucky when it comes to palaeontology. The skeleton found in 1879 was very complete. Unfortunately, it lacked a head. Very often the small head is missing when digging up sauropods.
Why Brontosaurus is no longer a dirty word for dinosaur hunters. A team of palaeontologists claims to have “resurrected” Brontosaurus.
Why was Brontosaurus renamed Apatosaurus?
In 1877, Othniel Charles Marsh described a new dinosaur named Apatosaurus. Two years later, he found a more complete skeleton that he decided belonged to another species, Brontosaurus. Brontosaurus became widely known to the public but much later it was determined the fossils were the same genus. The oldest name, Apatosaurus, takes precedence although Brontosaurus remained more popular.
Only Brontosaurus is in the subfamily, the other genera being synonyms or diplodocines. It has long been considered a junior synonym of Apatosaurus with its type species reclassified in 1903. A 2015 study concluded Brontosaurus is distinct from Apatosaurus, but not all paleontologists agree.
In 1903, Elmer Riggs argued Apatosaurus was a juvenile Brontosaurus, the names referring to the same species. The name given to the first specimen discovered, Apatosaurus, became the accepted name although Brontosaurus remained better known.
The relationship between these dinosaurs is debated. Brontosaurus may not be valid but Apatosaurus is. Recent studies suggest apatosaurus and brontosaurus are different species rather than the same animal renamed. More research is needed as technology progresses.
What is a Brontosaurus vs Brachiosaurus?
Brontosaurus and Brachiosaurus were herbivorous dinosaurs. Brontosaurus was famous for its length, while Brachiosaurus stood tall with its long neck. Their appearances and physical characteristics set them apart, with Brachiosaurus being taller and heavier.
The main difference between Brontosaurus and Brachiosaurus is that the former is more closely related to modern-day birds than the latter. This new information changes our understanding of dinosaur evolution.
The main difference between a Brontosaurus and a Brachiosaurus is observable in their size, posture, and feeding habits – among some other traits. Brontosaurus weighed around 33,000 lbs and Brachiosaurus was more than triple this weighing up to around 128,000 lbs.
Brontosaurus had a downward-angled neck, while Brachiosaurus had an upward-angled neck. Brachiosaurus had front legs longer than the back legs.
The Brontosaurus was a solitary species, whereas the Brachiosaurus was a herd animal. Although both were gigantic, the Brachiosaurus was much bigger and heavier compared to the Brontosaurus.
The brachiosaurus was known for its distinctive long neck and large nostrils at the top of its head. This feature enabled them to breathe with ease while partially submerged in water.
Brontosaurus had a neck of 15 vertebrae, whereas Brachiosaurus had a shorter neck of 12 vertebrae. The elongated necks allowed them to reach vegetation high above the ground.
Brachiosaurus had longer forelimbs than hindlimbs, which gave it a steeply inclined back. Brontosaurus had a more level back and its forelimbs and hindlimbs were more similar in length.
Did Brontosaurus exist at same time as T Rex?
For one thing, they didn’t live at the same time. Plus, there aren’t any archeological records so far of a clash between them.
T-Rex and Spinosaurus were both massive dinosaurs that lived during the late Cretaceous period, but in different regions and at different times.
In an evolutionary sense, birds are a living group of dinosaurs. Other than birds, there is no evidence that dinosaurs are still alive.
Dinosaurs went extinct about 65 million years ago.
The first thing you need to consider is that T-Rex and Brachiosaurus lived in different time periods.
Brontosaurus was a large dinosaur that lived during the Late Jurassic Period. The first evidence of Brontosaurus was discovered in the 1870s.
When scientists looked at Apatosaurus fossils later they realized it was the same as Brontosaurus. Scientists use the first name given to an animal.
Brontosaurus has to be the second most famous dinosaur behind T. rex. But paleontologists debate whether Brontosaurus actually exists.
Although Apatosaurus is the official name, Brontosaurus and Apatosaurus are two names for the same dinosaur.
What do they call Brontosaurus now? Has Brontosaurus been reclassified?
Forget Extinct: Brontosaurus Never Existed.
The diplodocus held it’s neck horizontally unlike the brachiosaurus.