Conservative estimate of Argentinosaurus compared to a 1.8 meter tall human.
Argentinosaurus is a sauropod sauropodomorph dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Argentina. It was named in 1993 by Jose F. Bonaparte and Rodolfo Coria. It has been routinely described as one of the largest - if not the largest - known dinosaurs to roam the Earth.
Physiology[]
Argentinosaurus was a large sauropod with a bulky, downwards-sloping body, a deep torso, 4 large, erect, pillar-like legs, a long tail, a long neck, and a small head. Its body would have been covered in scaly skin.
Diet[]
Argentinosaurus was an herbivore, feeding on leaves from large trees. Its peg-like teeth were used to strip branches of their leaves, and its long neck and limbs allowed it to access vegetation some 15 meters in the air without rearing.
Ecology[]
Despite its massive size, Argentinosaurus was a competent terrestrial walker, with one study concluding that it was able to walk at a maximum of 5 mph across the vast scrublands it lived in; however, the Argentinosaurus mount used for this study was inaccurate, and its top speed is likely to have been underestimated. As well as this, its neck was able to be used in two different ways, from reaching up high in order to feed on conifers to sweeping the ground in search of bushes and ferns. Along with this, the sauropod would have traveled in small herds in order to protect juveniles from harm; juveniles and subadults would have fallen prey to predators such as Mapusaurus, while adults were impervious to predation. An interesting thing to note is that Argentinosaurus never stopped growing, and that babies would have to grow 25000 times their size in order to reach adult size.
In popular culture[]
Argentinosaurus was first introduced to the public in the 2nd episode of the 2002 documentary Chased by Dinosaurs, where it is shown as the biggest dinosaur to ever live; as well as this, it was featured alongside many animals misplaced through time (and space), such as Giganotosaurus (mentioned as the biggest land carnivore), Macrogryphosaurus, Sarcosuchus, Tropeognathus, and Pteranodon (the latter of which was very egregious). It appeared again in another documentary, Planet Dinosaur, where it was accurately shown alongside other dinosaurs that did live with it; however, it was depicted as being a prey item for Mapusaurus, no matter what age (on the other hand, it was shown as more than capable of killing the theropod).
References[]
COMING SOON