Damalasaurus
Type species Damalasaurus magnus
- Lived
- 201 to 175 million years ago, Early Jurassic
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Group
- Sauropods
- Found in
- China
- Named by
- Zhao 1985
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
190 million years ago
Habitat
It lived on land in what is now China during the Jurassic.
Field notes
About Damalasaurus
What it was like
Damalasaurus was an early sauropod, a long-necked plant eater. It is known from a few bones and was never fully described.
Its world
It lived in the Jurassic, in what is now China.
How it was found
Zhao named Damalasaurus in 1985. The type species is Damalasaurus magnus. Because it was never properly described, most scientists treat the name as doubtful.
Field gallery
More views of Damalasaurus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
The evidence
The science behind Damalasaurus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- A few bones reported as belonging to an early sauropod from Jurassic China.
Borrowed from relatives
- A long neck and four-legged body are inferred from early sauropods such as Vulcanodon.
Still unknown
- Which features distinguish it from other early sauropods.
- Its body proportions and precise place in the family tree.
- The landscape and animals around its fossil site.
Discovery timeline
- 1985Named itZhao
- 2016Family treeMcPhee et al.
- 2024Fossil sitesWei et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Damalasaurus
Named it
Listed Damalasaurus among the Jurassic reptiles of China without a full anatomical description.
[The Jurassic Reptilia]. [The Jurassic System of China. Stratigraphy of China, No. 11].
No link available
Family tree
Reviewed early sauropods from China and listed Damalasaurus among the forms whose sauropod identity needs clarification.
A revision of Sanpasaurus yaoi Young, 1944 from the Early Jurassic of China, and its relevance to the early evolution of Sauropoda (Dinosauria). PeerJ 4: e2578
Read the paper : A revision of Sanpasaurus yaoi Young, 1944 from the Early Jurassic of China, and its relevance to the early evolution of Sauropoda (Dinosauria) (opens in a new tab)Fossil sites
Described large sauropod bones from Jurassic China and highlighted the lack of detailed descriptions for older names, including Damalasaurus.
New sauropod remains from the Middle Jurassic Dongdaqiao Formation of Qamdo, eastern Tibet. Palaeoworld 33: 744-752
Read the paper : New sauropod remains from the Middle Jurassic Dongdaqiao Formation of Qamdo, eastern Tibet (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Sauropoda
Sources: Wikidata