Mierasaurus
"Miera's lizard"
- Lived
- 139 to 133 million years ago, Early Cretaceous
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Group
- Sauropods
- Found in
- United States
- Named by
- Royo-Torres et al. 2017
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
135 million years ago
Habitat
Wet, boggy ground with roots spreading through the mud. Other dinosaurs from the Cedar Mountain Formation included Utahraptor, Gastonia and Iguanacolossus.
Field notes
About Mierasaurus
What it was like
Mierasaurus was a long-necked, four-legged plant eater from the turiasaurs, a group best known from Europe. It is known from a mostly complete skeleton, with parts of the skull and teeth.
It was a relative of Turiasaurus from Spain, which suggests these sauropods moved between Europe and North America.
Its world
It lived in the Early Cretaceous in what is now Utah, in the United States. Its bones come from the lower part of the Cedar Mountain Formation, where it shared the land with the giant raptor Utahraptor.
How it was found
Royo-Torres and colleagues named Mierasaurus in 2017, from a single find. The name honors an early explorer of the region.
Field gallery
More views of Mierasaurus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 2
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 Mierasaurus.
The evidence
The science behind Mierasaurus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- A largely complete skeleton preserves parts of the skull, teeth, backbone, limbs and feet.
- Its teeth have broad, heart-shaped crowns, like those of other turiasaurs.
- The lower limbs extended deep into the surrounding mud, suggesting the animal became trapped.
Borrowed from relatives
- Most of the body is restored from its own bones, with comparisons to Moabosaurus and Turiasaurus filling smaller gaps.
- Scaly skin follows the skin impressions known from other sauropods.
Still unknown
- Its color and skin pattern.
- Which plants it ate.
- Whether it traveled in herds.
Discovery timeline
- 2014Close relativeMateus, Mannion & Upchurch
- 2017Named itRoyo-Torres et al.
- 2019Family treeMannion
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Mierasaurus
Close relative
Described Zby, a fellow turiasaur whose tooth and front limb help explain the anatomy of this sauropod group.
Zby atlanticus , a new turiasaurian sauropod (Dinosauria, Eusauropoda) from the Late Jurassic of Portugal. Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 34: 618-634
Read the paper : Zby atlanticus , a new turiasaurian sauropod (Dinosauria, Eusauropoda) from the Late Jurassic of Portugal (opens in a new tab)Named it
Described the largely complete skeleton and showed that Mierasaurus and Moabosaurus belonged to a sauropod group previously best known from Europe.
Descendants of the Jurassic turiasaurs from Iberia found refuge in the Early Cretaceous of western USA. Scientific Reports 7
Read the paper : Descendants of the Jurassic turiasaurs from Iberia found refuge in the Early Cretaceous of western USA (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Identified a turiasaur vertebra from England, extending the history of the group that includes Mierasaurus from the Jurassic into the Cretaceous.
A turiasaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Wealden Supergroup of the United Kingdom. PeerJ 7: e6348
Read the paper : A turiasaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous Wealden Supergroup of the United Kingdom (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Turiasauria
Sources: Wikidata