Coloradisaurus
"Los Colorados lizard"
- Lived
- 227 to 206 million years ago, Late Triassic
- Length
- about 4 m (13 ft)
- Group
- Early sauropodomorphs, Massospondylidae
- Found in
- Argentina
- Named by
- Lambert 1983
Size comparison
To scale
Scale in metersOutline: typical early sauropodomorph shape
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
220 million years ago
Habitat
Rivers wound across broad floodplains in the Los Colorados Formation of Argentina. Its neighbors included Riojasaurus, Lessemsaurus and Zupaysaurus.
Field notes
About Coloradisaurus
What it was like
Coloradisaurus was a plant eater about 4 meters (13 feet) long, from the long-necked line that later produced the giant sauropods. It had a small head with large eyes, a long neck and strong hands with big thumb claws.
It was a relative of Massospondylus and Lufengosaurus.
Its world
It lived in the Late Triassic in what is now northwestern Argentina. Its bones come from the Los Colorados Formation, where it shared the land with the plant eaters Riojasaurus and Lessemsaurus and the crested hunter Zupaysaurus.
How it was found
Lambert named Coloradisaurus in 1983. Two finds are known, one with a well-preserved skull.
Field gallery
More views of Coloradisaurus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 3
Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Coloradisaurus.
The evidence
The science behind Coloradisaurus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- A well-preserved skull and lower jaw show a short snout and rounded openings at the back of the skull roof.
- A second partial skeleton preserves parts of the backbone, shoulders, arms, hips and hind legs.
Borrowed from relatives
- Missing parts are restored with help from close relatives such as Lufengosaurus and Massospondylus.
- Shared features of the shoulders and legs link it especially closely to Lufengosaurus.
Still unknown
- Its skin texture and color.
- How its body changed as it grew.
- Which plants made up its diet.
Discovery timeline
- 1983Named itLambert
- 2012Full descriptionAPALDETTI, POL & YATES
- 2014SkullApaldetti et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Coloradisaurus
Named it
Introduced the name Coloradisaurus for the short-snouted dinosaur from the Los Colorados Formation.
A Field Guide to Dinosaurs. Avon Books, New York.
No link available
Full description
Described a partial skeleton and found features supporting a close relationship with Lufengosaurus within the family of Massospondylus.
The postcranial anatomy of Coloradisaurus brevis (Dinosauria: Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic of Argentina and its phylogenetic implications. Palaeontology 56: 277-301
Read the paper : The postcranial anatomy of Coloradisaurus brevis (Dinosauria: Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic of Argentina and its phylogenetic implications (opens in a new tab)Skull
Restudied the skull and lower jaw, identifying distinctive features and further support for its placement among relatives of Massospondylus.
Redescription of the Skull ofColoradisaurus brevis(Dinosauria, Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic Los Colorados Formation of the Ischigualasto-Villa Union Basin, northwestern Argentina. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34: 1113-1132
Read the paper : Redescription of the Skull ofColoradisaurus brevis(Dinosauria, Sauropodomorpha) from the Late Triassic Los Colorados Formation of the Ischigualasto-Villa Union Basin, northwestern Argentina (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Massospondylidae
Sources: Wikidata