Galeamopus
Type species Galeamopus hayi
- Lived
- 155 to 143 million years ago, Late Jurassic
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Group
- Sauropods, Diplodocidae
- Found in
- United States
- Named by
- Tschopp et al. 2015
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
150 million years ago
Habitat
River floodplains with conifers and ferns in the Morrison Formation. Diplodocus, Stegosaurus and Allosaurus lived in the same region.
Field notes
About Galeamopus
What it was like
Galeamopus was a long-necked plant eater, a relative of Diplodocus, with a long whip-like tail. It is known from several skeletons, including a very well preserved skull.
Its world
It lived in the Late Jurassic in what is now Wyoming and Colorado in the United States. Its bones come from the Morrison Formation, where it shared the land with Diplodocus, Brontosaurus, Stegosaurus and the hunter Allosaurus.
How it was found
Tschopp and colleagues named Galeamopus in 2015, for bones that had long been thought to belong to Diplodocus. Six finds are known.
Field gallery
More views of Galeamopus
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 Galeamopus.
The evidence
The science behind Galeamopus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- Well-preserved skulls and skeletons that reveal much of its long-necked body.
- The skeleton of Galeamopus pabsti includes bones from every major body region except the tail.
- Galeamopus pabsti had a particularly strong upper arm and stout forearm bones.
Borrowed from relatives
- Much of its body is known from its own bones; Diplodocus helps fill gaps in the long tail.
- Feeding studies of Diplodocus suggest that Galeamopus may also have used its narrow teeth to strip vegetation.
Still unknown
- Its color and the full texture of its skin.
- Which plants it preferred to eat.
- Whether it cared for its young.
Discovery timeline
- 2012Close relativeYoung et al.
- 2015Named itTschopp, Mateus & Benson
- 2017Full descriptionTschopp & Mateus
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Galeamopus
Close relative
Tested the skull of Diplodocus and supported branch stripping, offering a comparison for feeding in its relative Galeamopus.
Cranial biomechanics of Diplodocus (Dinosauria, Sauropoda): testing hypotheses of feeding behaviour in an extinct megaherbivore. Naturwissenschaften 99: 637-643
Read the paper : Cranial biomechanics of Diplodocus (Dinosauria, Sauropoda): testing hypotheses of feeding behaviour in an extinct megaherbivore (opens in a new tab)Named it
Separated Galeamopus from Diplodocus after comparing individual skeletons across the diplodocid family.
A specimen-level phylogenetic analysis and taxonomic revision of Diplodocidae (Dinosauria, Sauropoda). PeerJ 3: e857
Read the paper : A specimen-level phylogenetic analysis and taxonomic revision of Diplodocidae (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) (opens in a new tab)Full description
Named Galeamopus pabsti from a well-preserved skeleton and found that sexual maturity came before all its backbone joints had fused.
Osteology of Galeamopus pabsti sp. nov. (Sauropoda: Diplodocidae), with implications for neurocentral closure timing, and the cervico-dorsal transition in diplodocids. PeerJ 5: e3179
Read the paper : Osteology of Galeamopus pabsti sp. nov. (Sauropoda: Diplodocidae), with implications for neurocentral closure timing, and the cervico-dorsal transition in diplodocids (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Diplodocidae
Sources: Wikidata