
Dinosaur profile
Austrosaurus
Pronunciation
Aw-stro-sore-us
Southern lizard
Sauropod
15 meters long
Early Cretaceous
112-99 million years ago
Australia
DietHerbivore
About Austrosaurus
Austrosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived during the Early Cretaceous Period, about 130-125 million years ago. It was a large, herbivorous dinosaur, with an estimated length of about 49-66 feet and a weight of about 10-15 tons. Austrosaurus had a long, slender neck and a small head with a beak and small, peg-like teeth. It also had a long, whip-like tail, which it may have used as a weapon to defend itself against predators. Its body was probably covered in a layer of tough, scaly skin.
Austrosaurus was discovered in Australia in the 1980s, and was named by paleontologists in 1989. It is considered a relatively primitive sauropod, and is thought to be closely related to other early sauropods such as Barapasaurus and Euhelopus. Austrosaurus is known from a number of well-preserved fossil specimens, including several partial skeletons and skulls, which have helped paleontologists learn more about the anatomy and behavior of this dinosaur.
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