Janenschia

"Janensch's one"

Lived: 149 to 143 million years ago, Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous
Diet: Herbivore
Length: about 20 m (66 ft)
Group: Sauropods
Found in: Tanzania
Named by: Wild 1991

Size comparison

To scale

**Janenschia** 20 m (66 ft)**Human** 1.8 m (6 ft)**School bus** 12 m (40 ft)

Where its fossils were found

The evidence

Today

2 finds

145 million years ago

Map: C. R. Scotese, PALEOMAP

Field notes

About Janenschia

What it was like

Janenschia was a large long-necked sauropod known from limb bones, including sturdy feet. Its place among sauropods has long been debated.

Its world

It lived in the Late Jurassic in what is now Tanzania. Its bones come from the Tendaguru Formation, a rich site shared with the giant Giraffatitan, the spiked Kentrosaurus and the predators Ceratosaurus and Elaphrosaurus.

How it was found

Wild named Janenschia in 1991. The name honors the paleontologist who led the great digs at Tendaguru.

Lived alongside

Found in the same rock formations

Close relatives

Other members of Eusauropoda

Sources: WikidataNamed in: R. Wild. 1991. Janenschia n. g. robusta (E. Fraas 1908) pro Tornieria robusta (E. Fraas 1908) (Reptilia, Saurischia, Sauropodomorpha) [Janenschia n. g. robusta (E. Fraas 1908) for Tornieria robusta (E. Fraas 1908) (Reptilia, Saurischia, Sauropodomorpha)]. Stuttgarter Beiträge zur Naturkunde, Serie B (Geologie und Paläontologie) 173:1-4