History UsefulNotes / PrehistoricLifeSauropods

'''Nobody's kin:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Shunosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omeisaurus Omeisaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagosaurus Patagosaurus]]'',
''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barapasaurus Barapasaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanodon Vulcanodon]]''

To date, the only significative apparition ''Mamenchisaurus'' has made in pop-culture was simple cameo in ''TheLostWorldJurassicPark''. It was unidentified and unnamed, maybe the only dinosaur in the ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' film-series that has not become Stock after that. As it seems, [[SarcasmMode four pop-cultural sauropods are just too many]].

The second meaning indicates the sauropod subgroup including the eponymous genus above: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Titanosaurs]]. First appeared in the Late Jurassic, they became a very abundant and widespread dinosaur group in Cretaceous, expecially in the Southern Continents (where competition from the more evolved Ornithischians was lower), and in the Late Cretaceus they managed to replace all the other sauropods. Here we list only some noticeable titanosaurian examples.

Not all titanosaurs were true titans: among colossi such as ''[[StockDinosaurs Argentinosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Paralititan]]'', or ''Antarctosaurus'', there was also an animal like ''Magyarosaurus'', a [[OxymoronicBeing dwarf sauropod]] ''only 6 m long'', which reduced its size to survive in small European islands. About ''Antarctosaurus'', this has been one of the first dinosaurs found in South America (since the start of the XX century: hence its generic name “Southern Lizard”), but is very poorly-known. Some alleged antarctosaur remains have been described in Africa and even India other than South America (the Indian one is now called ''Jainosaurus''); some of these are nearly as big as those of ''Argentinosaurus'' found several decades later (see StockDinosaurs). Most titanosaurs, however, were far from the two extremes. The armoured ''Saltasaurus'' and the [[TheUnpronounceable almost unutterable]] ''Opisthocoelicaudia'', for example, were 12 m long--- still half the size of an apatosaur.

"Titanosaurus", ''Antarctosaurus'', and ''Argentinosaurus'' are not the only fragmentary kinds however: ironically, despite the high number of described species, titanosaur remains are almost always very scant. Just as an example, ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia is considered one of the most complete together with ''Saltasaurus'', with well-preserved body, limbs and tail… but its head and neck are unknown. Its skeleton do not shows any sign of preserved body armor, but other titanosaurians do; these one were the most evolved, from Late Cretaceous, usually small-sized for sauropod standards. To compensate, the most primitive ones were often enormous-sized to defend themselves against predators like the carcharodontosaurids.

'''Titanic lizards 2:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamosaurus Alamosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypselosaurus Hypselosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isisaurus Isisaurus]]''

Even though most titanosaurian remains are from South America (expecially Argentina), they have been found in most parts of the world. Both ''Hypselosaurus'' and ''Ampelosaurus'' come from France; the latter’s status as “the most complete French sauropod” has made it a sort of national celebrity. ''Hypselosaurus'' is far more fragmentary, but is famous because is classically thought the source of some large fossil eggs found in the XIX century; they are reputed the biggest dinosaurian eggs ever found, and yet they’re ''only one foot long'' - not exactly like those man-sized objects seen in cartoons. [[note]] Technically, they weren’t the biggest dinosaur eggs: the famous recently-extinct “[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_bird Elephant Bird]]” from Madagascar laid the biggest known land-based eggs in the whole animal kingdom: up to 2 ft long.[[/note]].

To date, the only significative apparition ''Mamenchisaurus'' has made in pop-culture was a extremely brief cameo in ''TheLostWorldJurassicPark''. It was unidentified and unnamed, maybe the only dinosaur in the ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' film-series that has not become Stock after that. As it seems, [[SarcasmMode four pop-cultural sauropods are just too many]].

'''Hearts, hearts everywhere:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barosaurus Barosaurus]]''

Discovered in USA at the end of the Bone Wars, ''Barosaurus'' was the closest relative of ''Diplodocus'', and lived as well in Late Jurassic North America; some possible remains from Africa are also known, but are generally thought to be from a different genus, ''Tornieria''. ''Barosaurus'' was virtually identical to ''Diplodocus'' except for its shorter tail counterbalanced by the longer neck. Its was one of the longest sauropods, only a bit shorter than ''Diplodocus''. ''Barosaurus'' means “heavy lizard”: though apt for a sauropod, is not totally appropriate. Having the same slender frame of ''Diplodocus'', the barosaur weighed less than other sauropods.

Discovered in USA at the end of the Bone Wars, ''Barosaurus'' was the closest relative of ''Diplodocus'', and lived as well in Late Jurassic North America; some possible remains from Africa are also known, but are fragmentary and undiagnostic. ''Barosaurus'' was virtually identical to ''Diplodocus'' except for its shorter tail counterbalanced by the longer neck. Its was one of the longest sauropods, only a bit shorter than a diplodocus. ''Barosaurus'' means “heavy lizard”: though apt for a sauropod, is not totally appropriate. Having the same slender frame of ''Diplodocus'', the barosaur weighed less than other sauropods.

Not all titanosaurs were true titans: among colossi such as ''[[StockDinosaurs Argentinosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Paralititan]]'', or ''Antarctosaurus'', there was also an animal like ''Magyarosaurus'', a [[OxymoronicBeing dwarf sauropod]] ''only 6 m long'', which reduced its size to survive in small European islands. About ''Antarctosaurus'', this has been one of the first dinosaurs found in South America (since the start of the XX century: hence its generic name “Southern Lizard”), but is very poorly-known. Some alleged antarctosaur remains have been described in Africa and even India other than South America; some of these are nearly as big as those of ''Argentinosaurus'' found several decades later (see StockDinosaurs). Most titanosaurs, however, were far from the two extremes. The armoured ''Saltasaurus'' and the [[TheUnpronounceable almost unutterable]] ''Opisthocoelicaudia'', for example, were 12 m long--- still half the size of an apatosaur.

While Diplodocoids are abundant, Brachiosaurids are much rarer. Most described species are fragmentary, and with their appearance unknown. We can mention, because of their historical relevance, ''Astrodon'' and ''Pelorosaurus''. The former ("starry tooth") is the first sauropod found in North America (even before the Bone Wars), but is known mainly from teeth; it’s thought a “small” sauropod about 10 m long, which lived in Early Cretaceous along deinonychosaurs and the [[{{Understatement}} slightly bigger]] relative ''[[StockDinosaurs Sauroposeidon]]''.

'''Diplodocus’ kin:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicraeosaurus Dicraeosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amargasaurus Amargasaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachytrachelopan Brachytrachelopan]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebbachisaurus Rebbachisaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haplocanthosaurus Haplocanthosaurus]]''

'''Diplodocus’ kin:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicraeosaurus Dicraeosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amargasaurus Amargasaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachytrachelopan Brachytrachelopan]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebbachisaurus Rebbachisaurus]]''

'''Nobody's kin:''' ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Shunosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagosaurus Patagosaurus]]''

The shunosaur pertains to a Asian sauropod subgroup which included also ''Mamenchisaurus'' and ''Omeisaurus'', a very similar but smaller relative which is also known to have had a tail-club (but without "spikes"). Several species are known from ''Omeisaurus'', and yet is not a common sight in books.

A dino-sized injustice: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camarasaurus Camarasaurus]]''

The longest neck: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamenchisaurus Mamenchisaurus]]''

Hearts, hearts everywhere: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barosaurus Barosaurus]]''

The armored brontosaur: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saltasaurus Saltasaurus]]''

A whale of dinosaur: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cetiosaurus Cetiosaurus]]''

Titanic lizards: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaurus Titanosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antarctosaurus Antarctosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magyarosaurus Magyarosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opisthocoelicaudia Opisthocoelicaudia]]''

Titanic lizards 2: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamosaurus Alamosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypselosaurus Hypselosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isisaurus Isisaurus]]''

Diplodocus’ kin: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicraeosaurus Dicraeosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amargasaurus Amargasaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachytrachelopan Brachytrachelopan]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebbachisaurus Rebbachisaurus]]''

Brachiosaur’s kin: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrodon Astrodon]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelorosaurus Pelorosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euhelopus Euhelopus]]''

Nobody's kin: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Shunosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Patagosaurus Patagosaurus]]''

A few longnecks more: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantosaurus Atlantosaurus]]'' and Australian sauropods

Titanic lizards 2: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamosaurus Alamosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wi''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypselosaurus Hypselosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isisaurus Isisaurus]]''

Titanic lizards: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaurus Titanosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamosaurus Alamosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypselosaurus Hypselosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opisthocoelicaudia Opisthocoelicaudia]]''

Diplodocus’ kin: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dicraeosaurus Dicraeosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amargasaurus Amargasaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebbachisaurus Rebbachisaurus]]''

The second meaning indicates the sauropod subgroup including the eponymous genus above: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Titanosaurs]]. First appeared in the Late Jurassic, they became a very abundant and widespread dinosaur group in Cretaceous, expecially in the Southern Continents (where the concurrence of the more evolved Ornithischians was lower), and in the Late Cretaceus they managed to replace all the other sauropods. Here we list only some noticeable titanosaurian examples.

* Which is the most common sauropod in the USA, ''[[StockDinosaurs Apatosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Brachiosaurus]]'', or ''[[StockDinosaurs Diplodocus]]''? None of them. It was ''Camarasaurus''. This dinosaur was as enormous as the former, and shared their same habitat in which other two popular dinosaurs lived, ''[[StockDinosaurs Stegosaurus]]'' and ''[[StockDinosaurs Allosaurus]]''; and yet, when was the last time you’ve heard “Camarasaurus” in a film/cartoon/comic? Even the famous SpeculativeDocumentary ''WalkingWithDinosaurs'' has totally ignored it, preferring its stock cousins instead. The misfortune of ''Camarasaurus'' is probably due to not detaining any size-record among sauropods: it has never been either “the longest” like ''Diplodocus'', or “the tallest/heaviest” like ''Brachiosaurus''. Discovered during the Bone Wars, ''Camarasaurus'' is considered by some a rather unsauropod-like sauropod, because of its relatively large head and its much-shorter neck compared to most other sauropods. It tended to be confused with the so-called “Brontosaurus” in the past, because the classic brontosaur portraits have a round head and a short, blunt tail, just like RealLife camarasaurs. However, ''Camarasaurus'' was more related to ''Brachiosaurus'' than to ''Apatosaurus''. Both the brachiosaur and the camarasaur had short, boxy skull with wide nasal openings, a nasal crest, and relatively large teeth which bordered the whole jaws - the ''Diplodocus'' and ''Apatosaurus'' skull was longer and flatter with peg-like teeth only on the jaw-tips. The four legs of ''Camarasaurus'' were about the same length, and its back was perfectly horizontal and perhaps even a bit taller on the shoulders: ''Apatosaurus'' and ''Diplodocus'' has shorter forelimbs than hindlimbs, and their back had a convex silhouette with the tallest point on the ''hips''.

* What is the thing that has really made sauropods the most iconic plant-eating dinosaurs? [[RhetoricalQuestionBlunder Their size]], useless to say. But there are few doubts that their unbelievably long necks have done their part, too. But wait: if you think ''Brachiosaurus'' and ''Diplodocus'' have disproportionately vast necks, is only because you’ve never seen their Chinese cousin: ''Mamenchisaurus''. The latter’s neck was so long that, if the animal would be still alive today, we could see it drinking some water from a lake with its forelimbs placed 12 m (40 ft) or even 15 m (50 ft) from the shore! In other words: the neck of ''Mamenchisaurus'' was ''longer than a whole T. rex was from nose to tail''. This record has made ''Mamenchisaurus'' one of the most famed sauropods as well as one of the most classic Chinese dinosaurs. [[hottip:* : It’s worth noting, however, that the classic record of “Whoa the longest-neck!” is now disputed now by the fragmentary ''Sauroposeidon'']]. Discovered in 1954, ''Mamenchisaurus'' lived in the same age of the stock sauropods (Late Jurassic). Initially believed a close ''Diplodocus'' relative, now is thought a more archaic kind of sauropod which incidentally reached a similar shape, though with a much shorter tail [[ScienceMarchesOn ending with a small club]]. Since the head of ''Mamenchisaurus'' has long been unknown, the most classic portraits show it with an inaccurate ''Diplodocus''-like head; actually ''Mamenchisaurus'' head was more similar to ''Camarasaurus''. In short, the polar opposite of what has happened to the allegedly boxy ''Apatosaurus'' head. To date, the only significative apparition ''Mamenchisaurus'' has made in pop-culture was a extremely brief cameo in ''TheLostWorldJurassicPark''. It was unidentified and unnamed, maybe the only dinosaur in the ''Franchise/JurassicPark'' film-series that has not become Stock after that. As it seems, [[SarcasmMode four pop-cultural sauropods are just too many]].

* OvershadowedByAwesome seems a common trope among dinosaurs. We see a dinosaur, remain struck by its awesomeness… but later, another similar yet even cooler dinosaur takes its place in our mind. ''Barosaurus'' could be an example. 8/9 m long, its neck was one of the longest in the whole Animal Kingdom, but is definitively overshadowed by the 12/15 m long neck of ''Mamenchisaurus'' (as well as that of the brachiosaurs). Discovered in USA at the end of the Bone Wars, ''Barosaurus'' was the closest relative of ''Diplodocus'', and lived as well in Late Jurassic North America; some possible remains from Africa are also known, but are fragmentary and undiagnostic. ''Barosaurus'' was virtually identical to ''Diplodocus'' except for its shorter tail counterbalanced by the longer neck. Its was one of the longest sauropods, only a bit shorter than a diplodocus. ''Barosaurus'' means “heavy lizard”: though apt for a sauropod, is not totally appropriate. Having the same slender frame of ''Diplodocus'', the barosaur weighed less than other sauropods. Its lower notoriety is probably due to the fact ''Barosaurus'' remains are less abundant than the ''Diplodocus'' ones. However, ''Barosaurus'' has gained more fame when a barosaur skeleton was mounted in the American Museum of Natural History in the 1980s. This skeleton is the dino-star of the museum, being mounted erected on the hindlimbs and the tail; 15 m tall, is shown defending its youngster from an attacking ''Allosaurus''. In the same years, one bizarre suggestion was made about its physiology: with such a long neck, ''Barosaurus'' may have had eight hearts to pump blood up to its lofty head. There isn’t any evidence for this idea, which is now generally discarded as “weird fantasy”.

* When we think about “armored” dinosaurs, our mind automatically goes to things such as ''[[StockDinosaurs Stegosaurus, Triceratops, Ankylosaurus]]''. Thus, if you are a layman, you could be astonished if we tell you that there was also an armored ''sauropod''. Scientists themselves were surprised when such an animal was discovered in 1980 in the Argentinian province of Salta: they called it ''Saltasaurus'' (not “Salt'''o'''saurus”, please). It walked around 80 million years after the overused "three stock band", almost managing to see the [[RockFallsEveryoneDies comet]]. ''Saltasaurus'' armor was different-looking than ''Ankylosaurus'' armor. It had no spikes, and was made by several small bony scutes of different size, covering all the upper parts of its torso like a mosaic. Though apparently much lighter than an ankylosaur’s, it would have been enough to defend the sauropod against predators like the contemporary “horned” ''Carnotaurus''. The scientific importance of ''Saltasaurus'' raised up even more after the discovery (made at the end of the 1990s) of a fossilized breeding-site full of nests and hatchlings, the very first known from a sauropod. These remains were attributed to ''Saltasaurus'', but we are not sure if they pertain to its genus. ''Saltasaurus'' is also a member of that subgroup of sauropods called titanosaurs (see below): since its discovery, armor plates of several other titanosaurs have since been found, although more incomplete. However, ''Saltasaurus'' was considerably smaller than many other sauropods (it was only 12 m long and not much heavier than an elephant); and, not counting the bony plates, its shape was that of a generic sauropod. This might partially explain why, despite its BadAss-look, ''Saltasaurus'' has remained a non-fictional animal unlike ''Carnotaurus''.

* Which were the biggest animals ever, whales or dinosaurs? Hard question, depends on what criterium you want to use. ''Cetiosaurus'', the first sauropod ever described, just means “whale-lizard”. But this is not a mere reference to its huge size; it was ''literally'' believed a whale-thing at one point. First found in 1842 in England slightly after Richard Owen coined the word “dinosaur”, its first remains were so incomplete that Owen couldn’t believe such a heavy animal could live on land. Since limb bones were missing, he thought the owner was a non-dinosaurian ''marine reptile'' (remember sea-reptiles were already very well-known at the time). When the limb bones were discovered several decades after, the familiar image of an elephantine “reptile” with long neck and tail came to light. Though not a Wastebin-taxon like ''[[StockDinosaurs Megalosaurus]]'', ''Cetiosaurus'' could thus be seen as its sauropodian equivalent - incidentally, lived just alongside ''Megalosaurus'' in Middle Jurassic Europe, but has been found in North Africa too. ''Cetiosaurus'' has been the archetypical “basal” sauropod, and lived ''before'' the Stock Trio. Among the cetiosaur's primitive traits, it had compact vertebrae instead of hollow - cavities in the backbone is a typical feature of more evolved sauropods like ''Apatosaurus, Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus'' and ''Camarasaurus'' (the latter’s name just meaning [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin lizard with cavities]]). Unfortunately for ''Cetiosaurus'', these sauropods were discovered in North America just in the period of the former’s correct interpretation, Their bigger size and/or their greater completeness meant ''Cetiosaurus'' was progressively put under the table. Making things worse, the cetiosaur has also a very generic look with no external traits that would make it recognizable. In short, this “whale of dinosaur” was predestined to become an only-book animal.

* “Titanosaur” is a often-heard name in documentaries, books and sometimes in pop-media: what is it exactly a titanosaur? Well, it has actually ''two'' meanings. The more strict one indicates a precise genus of Late Cretaceous dinosaur, ''Titanosaurus'', the first sauropod discovered in India (and Asia), in year 1877. Ironically, it’s actually is one of the most fragmentary sauropods, known only from few vertebrae and some other material, but was treated as one of the two most classic dinosaurian “wastebins” together with “[[StockDinosaurs Megalosaurus]]”: to the point that ''Titanosaurus''es cropped up everywhere in the world - now they are regarded either dubious, or reclassified in new genera. The second meaning indicates the sauropod subgroup including the eponymous genus above: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Titanosaurs]]. They were a very abundant and widespread dinosaur group in Cretaceous, expecially the Late one; here we list only some noticeable examples. There were not only giants like ''[[StockDinosaurs Argentinosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Paralititan]]'', or ''Antarctosaurus'' (the latter is known since the start of the XX century, hence its generic name “Southern Lizard”). There was also an animal like ''Magyarosaurus'', a [[OxymoronicBeing dwarf sauropod]] ''only 6 m long'', which reduced its size to survive in small European islands. Most titanosaurs, however, were far from these extremes. The armoured ''Saltasaurus'' and the [[TheUnpronounceable almost unutterable]] ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' were 12 m long. Ironically, despite the high number of described species, titanosaur remains are very scant. Just as an example, ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia is considered one of the most complete, with well-preserved body, limbs and tail… but its head and neck are unknown. Even though most titanosaurian remains are from South America (expecially Argentina), they have been found in most parts of the world. Both ''Hypselosaurus'' and ''Ampelosaurus'' come from France; the latter’s status as “the most complete French sauropod” has made it a sort of national celebrity. ''Hypselosaurus'' is far more fragmentary, but is famous because is classically thought the source of some large fossil eggs found in the XIX century; they are reputed the biggest dinosaurian eggs ever found, and yet they’re ''only one foot long'' - not exactly like those man-sized objects seen in cartoons. [[note]] Technically, they weren’t the biggest dinosaur eggs: the famous recently-extinct “[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_bird Elephant Bird]]” from Madagascar laid the biggest known land-based eggs in the whole animal kingdom: up to 2 ft long.[[/note]]. Among titanosaurs which fell in the ''Titanosaurus''-Wastebasket, the most astonishing is ''Isisaurus'' from India. With its thick neck, short tail and strongly sloping backbone, it was the most giraffe-like sauropod known to date, even more than the well-known brachiosaurids. And what about North America? Did any titanosaur live here, along with T. rexes and Triceratops? Yes, it did, but was the only one known: ''Alamosaurus'', possibly a isolated migrant originary from South America. Even though is known only from (again…) not-complete remains, its status of “the only one who met TyrannosaurusRex in RealLife!” (and its “token sauropod” appearance as well) has made it the perfect HandWave for those artists/writers who have fun to portray ''Apatosaurus'' and ''Tyrannosaurus'' [[MisplacedWildlife living]] [[AnachronismStew side-by-side]]. Considering [[SarcasmMode the extreme rarity]] of this eventuality, this would make ''Alamosaurus'', not “Brontosaurus”, [[UnfortunateImplications the real Great-Stock sauropod...]]

* ''Diplodocus'' (and ''Apatosaurus'' of course) had many relatives. Not only some real or alleged “biggest dinosaurs ever” (''Supersaurus'', ''Amphicoelias''), but also many other smaller, usually more primitive animals: ''Dicraeosaurus'' for example. Found in the famous Tendaguru deposit, it’s the smallest member of the classic Late Jurassic African [[PowerTrio Sauropod Trio]] (the other two have usually been called “Barosaurus” and “Brachiosaurus”, but they probably aren’t; a fourth sauropod from this time and place was named in 2007 and is covered below). With its short, Apatosaur-like neck and a long, Diplodocus-like tail, ''Dicraeosaurus'' could have had a ridge on its back, but this is not sure. His South American Early Cretaceous relative, ''Amargasaurus'', surely had this. Its pairs of neural spines which arose from its neck perhaps substained a sail, or maybe were covered in keratin, making them true spikes for defense. Still another relative, the recently-discovered ''Brachytrachelopan'' (also South American but Jurassic) was even weirder; with its extremely shortened neck, it didn't seem even a sauropod! [[hottip:* : Indeed South America has gifted many odd sauropods in recent years: ''Agustinia'' had long, raised bony plates very Stegosaur-like. ''Bonitasaura'' had uniquely a horny beak put ''behind'' the frontal teeth.]] Other diplodocoids were still more primitive than the above: ''Rebbachisaurus'' from Cretaceous Sahara maybe still hadn’t a whip-like tail. Its family also contains ''Nigersaurus'', whose well-preserved skull shows strange grinding teeth. Some sauropods are controversial if they were diplodocoids, or not: ''Haplocanthosaurus'' could be a more basal sauropod. It lived alongside the “stock sauropod trio” "Apato"-"Diplo"-''Brachiosaurus'' in Late Jurassic North America, but is rarer and extremely less-portrayed. Also living along the latter was ''Eobrontosaurus'', a very Apatosaurus-like diplodocid which has partially resuscitated “Brontosaurus” in the official dinosaur list. Finally, two examples from Late Cretaceous Mongolia: ''Nemegtosaurus'' and ''Quaesitosaurus'', both known from one single Diplodocus-like skull. Since Late Cretaceous sauropods were titanosaurs, the question is: were they late-surviving diplodocoids, or just ''Diplodocus''-like titanosaurs? In 2000, the discovery in Madagascar of ''Rapetosaurus'', a very complete Late Cretaceous titanosaur with a clearly ''Diplodocus''-shaped head, reveals the second option being the more likely.

* While Diplodocoids are abundant, Brachiosaurids are much rarer. Most described species are fragmentary, and with their appearance unknown. We can mention, because of their historical relevance, ''Astrodon'' and ''Pelorosaurus''. The former is the first sauropod found in North America (even before the Bone Wars), but is known mainly from teeth; it’s thought a “small” sauropod which lived in Early Cretaceous along deinonychosaurs. The much bigger ''Pelorosaurus'' (like most non-stock brachiosaurids, lived in Early Cretaceous) was the second sauropod described from Europe, and lived together with ''Iguanodon''. Being its remains very scanty, it too was treated as a Waste-Basket taxon like ''Titanosaurus'': one of these former “pelorosaurs” is the dubious but coolly-named "Gigantosaurus" (not ''[[StockDinosaurs Giganotosaurus]]''). ''Australodocus'', initially considered a diplodocoid, may also belong in this group. Together, Brachiosaurids, Titanosaurs, ''Camarasaurus'' and others make the Macronarians, one of the two great sauropod subgroups together with Diplodocoids. Another macronarian which deserve a mention is ''Euhelopus''. The first-found sauropod in China, similar to a miniaturized ''Mamenchisaurus'', it could have been the model for [[WalkingWithDinosaurs Prehistoric Park]]’s “titanosaurs”, being the most classic among Asian Early Cretaceous sauropods.

Nobody's kin: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Shunosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barapasaurus Barapasaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanodon Vulcanodon]]''

* Not every sauropod is either Diplodocoid or Macronarian. Many were more primitive than both. ''Cetiosaurus'' and ''Mamenchisaurus'' have already been mentioned: another relevant basal sauropod is ''Shunosaurus'', from Chinese Middle Jurassic. Rather small (10 m long) and short-necked, it’s worthy of note for two things: its bony-club on its tailtip surrounded by four short spikes, resembling a combination between a Stegosaurian and Ankylosaurian tail; and the fact that, with its 20 or more skeletons known, ''Shunosaurus'' is one of the most common sauropod in fossil record, rivalling ''Camarasaurus''. The shunosaur pertains to a Asian sauropod subgroup which included also ''Mamenchisaurus'' and another very similar animal, ''Omeisaurus'' (several species are known from the latter, and yet is not a common sight in books). Outside Asia, primitive sauropods include ''Patagosaurus'' from [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Patagonia]] and ''Jobaria'' from Africa – both Middle Jurassic, even though the latter was believed Cretaceous, thus a [[ScienceMarchesOn late-surviving form]]. Yet, there were even more basal sauropods other than these: ''Vulcanodon'' and ''Barapasaurus'' are two main examples. Both from Early Jurassic, they still had “prosauropod” traits in their skeletons, but their external shape was already sauropodian, with pillar-like limbs. While ''Vulcanodon'' (whose strange name means “volcano tooth”) was very small for a sauropod (6 m long, less than a plateosaur), ''Barapasaurus'' (not to be confounded with ''Barosaurus'') was the first known sauropod to have reached the classic huge sauropodian size (18 m long). It’s also one of the few dinosaurs from India, while the vulcanodont was Southern African and lived alongside the well-known prosauropod ''Massospondylus''.

* Sauropods have been found everywhere, LandDownUnder as well. But are little-known there. ''Austrosaurus'' and ''Rhoetosaurus'': are two rarities in books, less-frequent than smaller Australian dinosaurs like ''Leaellynasaura'' or even the [[ScienceMarchesOn alleged]] “dwarf allosaur”; this can be justified though, giving their scarse remains. An almost-forgotten-today but very-important-once sauropod is "Atlantosaurus" (“Atlas lizard”); the first sauropod discovered within American Bone-Wars, but largely based on ''Apatosaurus'' remains, while the original "Atlantosaurus" is so incomplete to be regarded dubious genus. Our "Atlantosaurus" used to ben often cited in old books as [[UpToEleven the biggest creature ever appeared on Earth]]: one of the very first examples of dinosaur-related sensationalism. A tradition that still continues today: see an exhaustive list in the StockDinosaurs page.

* ''Diplodocus'' (and ''Apatosaurus'' of course) had many relatives. Not only some real or alleged “biggest dinosaurs ever” (''Supersaurus'', ''Amphicoelias''), but also many other smaller, usually more primitive animals: ''Dicraeosaurus'' for example. Found in the famous Tendaguru deposit, it’s the smallest member of the classic Late Jurassic African [[PowerTrio Sauropod Trio]] (the other two have usually been called “Barosaurus” and “Brachiosaurus”, but they probably aren’t). With its short, Apatosaur-like neck and a long, Diplodocus-like tail, ''Dicraeosaurus'' could have had a ridge on its back, but this is not sure. His South American Early Cretaceous relative, ''Amargasaurus'', surely had this. Its pairs of neural spines which arose from its neck perhaps substained a sail, or maybe were covered in keratin, making them true spikes for defense. Still another relative, the recently-discovered ''Brachytrachelopan'' (also South American but Jurassic) was even weirder; with its extremely shortened neck, it didn't seem even a sauropod! [[hottip:* : Indeed South America has gifted many odd sauropods in recent years: ''Agustinia'' had long, raised bony plates very Stegosaur-like. ''Bonitasaura'' had uniquely a horny beak put ''behind'' the frontal teeth.]] Other diplodocoids were still more primitive than the above: ''Rebbachisaurus'' from Cretaceous Sahara maybe still hadn’t a whip-like tail. Its family also contains ''Nigersaurus'', whose well-preserved skull shows strange grinding teeth. Some sauropods are controversial if they were diplodocoids, or not: ''Haplocanthosaurus'' could be a more basal sauropod. It lived alongside the “stock sauropod trio” "Apato"-"Diplo"-''Brachiosaurus'' in Late Jurassic North America, but is rarer and extremely less-portrayed. Also living along the latter was ''Eobrontosaurus'', a very Apatosaurus-like diplodocid which has partially resuscitated “Brontosaurus” in the official dinosaur list. Finally, two examples from Late Cretaceous Mongolia: ''Nemegtosaurus'' and ''Quaesitosaurus'', both known from one single Diplodocus-like skull. Since Late Cretaceous sauropods were titanosaurs, the question is: were they late-surviving diplodocoids, or just ''Diplodocus''-like titanosaurs? In 2000, the discovery in Madagascar of ''Rapetosaurus'', a very complete Late Cretaceous titanosaur with a clearly ''Diplodocus''-shaped head, reveals the second option being the more likely.

* “Titanosaur” is a often-heard name in documentaries, books and sometimes in pop-media: what is it exactly a titanosaur? Well, it has actually ''two'' meanings. The more strict one indicates a precise genus of Late Cretaceous dinosaur, ''Titanosaurus'', the first sauropod discovered in India (and Asia), in year 1877. Ironically, it’s actually is one of the most fragmentary sauropods, known only from few vertebrae and some other material, but was treated as one of the two most classic dinosaurian “wastebins” together with “[[StockDinosaurs Megalosaurus]]”: to the point that ''Titanosaurus''es cropped up everywhere in the world - now they are regarded either dubious, or reclassified in new genera. The second meaning indicates the sauropod subgroup including the eponymous genus above: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Titanosaurs]]. They were a very abundant and widespread dinosaur group in Cretaceous, expecially the Late one; here we list only some noticeable examples. There were not only giants like ''[[StockDinosaurs Argentinosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Paralititan]]'', or ''Antarctosaurus'' (the latter is known since the start of the XX century, hence its generic name “Southern Lizard”). There was also an animal like ''Magyarosaurus'', a [[OxymoronicBeing dwarf sauropod]] ''only 6 m long'', which reduced its size to survive in small European islands. Most titanosaurs, however, were far from these extremes. The armoured ''Saltasaurus'' and the [[TheUnpronounceable almost unutterable]] ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' were 12 m long. Ironically, despite the high number of described species, titanosaur remains are very scant. Just as an example, ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia is considered one of the most complete, with well-preserved body, limbs and tail… but its head and neck are unknown. Even though most titanosaurian remains are from South America (expecially Argentina), they have been found in most parts of the world. Both ''Hypselosaurus'' and ''Ampelosaurus'' come from France; the latter’s status as “the most complete French sauropod” has made it a sort of national celebrity. ''Hypselosaurus'' is far more fragmentary, but is famous because is classically thought the source of some large fossil eggs found in the XIX century; they are reputed the biggest dinosaurian eggs ever found, and yet they’re ''only one foot long'' - not exactly like those man-sized objects seen in cartoons. [[note]] Technically, they weren’t the biggest dinosaur eggs: the famous recently-extinct “[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_bird Elephant Bird]]” from Madagascar laid the biggest known eggs in the whole animal kingdom: up to 2 ft long.[[/note]]. Among titanosaurs which fell in the ''Titanosaurus''-Wastebasket, the most astonishing is ''Isisaurus'' from India. With its thick neck, short tail and strongly sloping backbone, it was the most giraffe-like sauropod known to date, even more than the well-known brachiosaurids. And what about North America? Did any titanosaur live here, along with T. rexes and Triceratops? Yes, it did, but was the only one known: ''Alamosaurus'', possibly a isolated migrant originary from South America. Even though is known only from (again…) not-complete remains, its status of “the only one who met TyrannosaurusRex in RealLife!” (and its “token sauropod” appearance as well) has made it the perfect HandWave for those artists/writers who have fun to portray ''Apatosaurus'' and ''Tyrannosaurus'' [[MisplacedWildlife living]] [[AnachronismStew side-by-side]]. Considering [[SarcasmMode the extreme rarity]] of this eventuality, this would make ''Alamosaurus'', not “Brontosaurus”, [[UnfortunateImplications the real Great-Stock sauropod...]]

* “Titanosaur” is a often-heard name in documentaries, books and sometimes in pop-media: what is it exactly a titanosaur? Well, it has actually ''two'' meanings. The more strict one indicates a precise genus of Late Cretaceous dinosaur, ''Titanosaurus'', the first sauropod discovered in India (and Asia), in year 1877. Ironically, it’s actually is one of the most fragmentary sauropods, known only from few vertebrae and some other material, but was treated as one of the two most classic dinosaurian “wastebins” together with “[[StockDinosaurs Megalosaurus]]”: to the point that ''Titanosaurus''es cropped up everywhere in the world - now they are regarded either dubious, or reclassified in new genera. The second meaning indicates the sauropod subgroup including the eponymous genus above: [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin Titanosaurs]]. They were a very abundant and widespread dinosaur group in Cretaceous, expecially the Late one; here we list only some noticeable examples. There were not only giants like ''[[StockDinosaurs Argentinosaurus]]'', ''[[StockDinosaurs Paralititan]]'', or ''Antarctosaurus'' (the latter is known since the start of the XX century, hence its generic name “Southern Lizard”). There was also an animal like ''Magyarosaurus'', a [[OxymoronicBeing dwarf sauropod]] ''only 6 m long'', which reduced its size to survive in small European islands. Most titanosaurs, however, were far from these extremes. The armoured ''Saltasaurus'' and the [[TheUnpronounceable almost unutterable]] ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' were 12 m long. Ironically, despite the high number of described species, titanosaur remains are very scant. Just as an example, ''Opisthocoelicaudia'' from Late Cretaceous Mongolia is considered one of the most complete, with well-preserved body, limbs and tail… but its head and neck are unknown. Even though most titanosaurian remains are from South America (expecially Argentina), they have been found in most parts of the world. Both ''Hypselosaurus'' and ''Ampelosaurus'' come from France; the latter’s status as “the most complete French sauropod” has made it a sort of national celebrity. ''Hypselosaurus'' is far more fragmentary, but is famous because is classically thought the source of some large fossil eggs found in the XIX century; they are reputed the biggest dinosaurian eggs ever found, and yet they’re ''only one foot long'' - not exactly like those man-sized objects seen in cartoons. [[hottip:*: Technically, they weren’t the biggest dinosaur eggs: the famous recently-extinct “[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elephant_bird Elephant Bird]]” from Madagascar laid the biggest known eggs in the whole animal kingdom: up to 2 ft long.]]. Among titanosaurs which fell in the ''Titanosaurus''-Wastebasket, the most astonishing is ''Isisaurus'' from India. With its thick neck, short tail and strongly sloping backbone, it was the most giraffe-like sauropod known to date, even more than the well-known brachiosaurids. And what about North America? Did any titanosaur live here, along with T. rexes and Triceratops? Yes, it did, but was the only one known: ''Alamosaurus'', possibly a isolated migrant originary from South America. Even though is known only from (again…) not-complete remains, its status of “the only one who met TyrannosaurusRex in RealLife!” (and its “token sauropod” appearance as well) has made it the perfect HandWave for those artists/writers who have fun to portray ''Apatosaurus'' and ''Tyrannosaurus'' [[MisplacedWildlife living]] [[AnachronismStew side-by-side]]. Considering [[SarcasmMode the extreme rarity]] of this eventuality, this would make ''Alamosaurus'', not “Brontosaurus”, [[UnfortunateImplications the real Great-Stock sauropod...]]

* ''Diplodocus'' (and ''Apatosaurus'' of course) had many relatives. Not only some real or alleged “biggest dinosaurs ever” (''Supersaurus'', ''Amphicoelias''), but also many other smaller, usually more primitive animals: ''Dicraeosaurus'' for example. Found in the famous Tendaguru deposit, it’s the smallest member of the classic Late Jurassic African [[PowerTrio Sauropod Trio]] (the other two have usually been called “Barosaurus” and “Brachiosaurus”, but they probably aren’t). With its short, Apatosaur-like neck and a long, Diplodocus-like tail, ''Dicraeosaurus'' could have had a ridge on its back, but this is not sure. His South American Early Cretaceous relative, ''Amargasaurus'', surely had this. Its pairs of neural spines which arose from its neck perhaps substained a sail, or maybe were covered in keratin, making them true spikes for defense. Still another relative, the recently-discovered ''Brachytrachelopan'' (also South American but Jurassic) was even weirder; with its extremely shortened neck, it didn't seem even a sauropod! [[hottip:* : Indeed South America has gifted many odd sauropods in recent years: ''Agustinia'' had long, raised bony plates very Stegosaur-like. ''Bonitasaura'' had uniquely a horny beak put ''behind'' the frontal teeth.]] Other diplodocoids were still more primitive than the above: ''Rebbachisaurus'' from Cretaceous Sahara maybe still hadn’t a whip-like tail. Its family also contains ''Nigersaurus'', whose well-preserved skull shows strange grinding teeth. Some sauropods are controversial if they were diplodocoids, or not: ''Haplocanthosaurus'' could be a more basal sauropod. It lived alongside the “stock sauropod trio” "Apato"-"Diplo"-''Brachiosaurus'' in Late Jurassic North America, but is rarer and extremely less-portrayed. Also living along the latter was ''Eobrontosaurus'', a very Apatosaurus-like diplodocid which has partially resuscitated “Brontosaurus” in the official dinosaur list. Finally, two examples from Late Cretaceous Mongolia: ''Nemegtosaurus'' and ''Quaesitosaurus'' (maybe one and the same), both known from one single Diplodocus-like skull. Since Late Cretaceous sauropods were titanosaurs, the question is: were they late-surviving diplodocoids, or just ''Diplodocus''-like titanosaurs? In 2000, the discovery in Madagascar of ''Rapetosaurus'', a very complete Late Cretaceous titanosaur with a clearly ''Diplodocus''-shaped head, reveals the second option being the more likely.

* While Diplodocoids are abundant, Brachiosaurids are much rarer. Most described species are fragmentary, and with their appearance unknown. We can mention, because of their historical relevance, ''Astrodon'' and ''Pelorosaurus''. The former is the first sauropod found in North America (even before the Bone Wars), but is known mainly from teeth; it’s thought a “small” sauropod which lived in Early Cretaceous along deinonychosaurs. The much bigger ''Pelorosaurus'' (like most non-stock brachiosaurids, lived in Early Cretaceous) was the second sauropod described from Europe, and lived together with ''Iguanodon''. Being its remains very scanty, it too was treated as a Waste-Basket taxon like ''Titanosaurus'': one of these former “pelorosaurs” is the dubious but coolly-named "Gigantosaurus" (not ''[[StockDinosaurs Giganotosaurus]]''). Together, Brachiosaurids, Titanosaurs, ''Camarasaurus'' and others make the Macronarians, one of the two great sauropodian subgroups together with Diplodocoids. Another macronarian which deserve a mention is ''Euhelopus''. The first-found sauropod in China, similar to a miniaturized ''Mamenchisaurus'', it could have been the model for [[WalkingWithDinosaurs Prehistoric Park]]’s “titanosaurs”, being the most classic among Asian Early Cretaceous sauropods.

* While Diplodocoids are abundant, Brachiosaurids are much rarer. Most described species are fragmentary, and with their appearance unknown. We can mention, because of their historical relevance, ''Astrodon'' and ''Pelorosaurus''. The former is the first sauropod found in North America (even before the Bone Wars), but is known mainly from teeth; it’s thought a “small” sauropod which lived in Early Cretaceous along ''Deinonychus'' and .''Utahraptor''. The much bigger ''Pelorosaurus'' (like most non-stock brachiosaurids, lived in Early Cretaceous) was the second sauropod described from Europe, and lived together with ''Iguanodon''. Being its remains very scanty, it too was treated as a Waste-Basket taxon like ''Titanosaurus'': one of these former “pelorosaurs” is the dubious but coolly-named "Gigantosaurus" (not ''[[StockDinosaurs Giganotosaurus]]''). Together, Brachiosaurids, Titanosaurs, ''Camarasaurus'' and others make the Macronarians, one of the two great sauropodian subgroups together with Diplodocoids. Another macronarian which deserve a mention is ''Euhelopus''. The first-found sauropod in China, similar to a miniaturized ''Mamenchisaurus'', it could have been the model for [[WalkingWithDinosaurs Prehistoric Park]]’s “titanosaurs”, being the most classic among Asian Early Cretaceous sauropods.

* While Diplodocoids are abundant, Brachiosaurids are much rarer. Most described species are fragmentary, and with their appearance unknown; take ''[[StockDinosaurs Sauroposeidon]]'' as example. We can mention, because of their historical relevance, ''Astrodon'' and ''Pelorosaurus''. The former is the first sauropod found in North America (even before the Bone Wars), but is known mainly from teeth; it’s thought a “small” sauropod which lived in Early Cretaceous along ''Deinonychus'' and .''Utahraptor''. The much bigger ''Pelorosaurus'' (like most non-stock brachiosaurids, lived in Early Cretaceous) was the second sauropod described from Europe, and lived together with ''Iguanodon''. Being its remains very scanty, it too was treated as a Waste-Basket taxon like ''Titanosaurus'': one of these former “pelorosaurs” is the dubious but coolly-named "Gigantosaurus" (not ''[[StockDinosaurs Giganotosaurus]]''). Together, Brachiosaurids, Titanosaurs, ''Camarasaurus'' and others make the Macronarians, one of the two great sauropodian subgroups together with Diplodocoids. Another macronarian which deserve a mention is ''Euhelopus''. The first-found sauropod in China, similar to a miniaturized ''Mamenchisaurus'', it could have been the model for [[WalkingWithDinosaurs Prehistoric Park]]’s “titanosaurs”, being the most classic among Asian Early Cretaceous sauropods.

* What is the thing that has really made sauropods the most iconic plant-eating dinosaurs? [[RhetoricalQuestionBlunder Their size]], useless to say. But there are few doubts that their unbelievably long necks have done their part, too. But wait: if you think ''Brachiosaurus'' and ''Diplodocus'' have disproportionately vast necks, is only because you’ve never seen their Chinese cousin: ''Mamenchisaurus''. The latter’s neck was so long that, if the animal would be still alive today, we could see it drinking some water from a lake with its forelimbs placed 12 m (40 ft) or even 15 m (50 ft) from the shore! In other words: the neck of ''Mamenchisaurus'' was ''longer than a whole T. rex was from nose to tail''. This record has made ''Mamenchisaurus'' one of the most famed sauropods as well as one of the most classic Chinese dinosaurs. [[hottip:* : It’s worth noting, however, that the classic record of “Whoa the longest-neck!” is now disputed now by the fragmentary ''Sauroposeidon'']]. Discovered in 1954, ''Mamenchisaurus'' lived in the same age of the stock sauropods (Late Jurassic). Initially believed a close ''Diplodocus'' relative, now is thought a more archaic kind of sauropod which incidentally reached a similar shape, though with a much shorter tail [[ScienceMarchesOn ending with a small club]]. Since the head of ''Mamenchisaurus'' has long been unknown, the most classic portraits show it with an inaccurate ''Diplodocus''-like head; actually ''Mamenchisaurus'' head was more similar to ''Camarasaurus''. In short, the polar opposite of what has happened to the allegedly boxy ''Apatosaurus'' head. To date, the only significative apparition ''Mamenchisaurus'' has made in pop-culture was a extremely brief cameo in ''JurassicPark 2''. It was unidentified and unnamed, maybe the only dinosaur in the JurassicPark film-series that has not become Stock after that. As it seems, [[SarcasmMode four pop-cultural sauropods are just too many]].

Titanic lizards: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alamosaurus Alamosaurus]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hypselosaurus Hypselosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opisthocoelicaudia Opisthocoelicaudia]]''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macronaria Brachiosaur’s kin]]: ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astrodon Astrodon]]'', ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pelorosaurus Pelorosaurus]]'', and ''[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Euhelopus Euhelopus]]''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camarasaurus A dino-sized injustice]]: ''Camarasaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamenchisaurus The longest neck]]: ''Mamenchisaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barosaurus Hearts, hearts everywhere]]: ''Barosaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saltasaurus The armored brontosaur]]: ''Saltasaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cetiosaurus A whale of dinosaur]]: ''Cetiosaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaur Titanic lizards]]: ''Alamosaurus'', ''Hypselosaurus'', and ''Opisthocoelicaudia''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplodocoidea Diplodocus’ kin]]: ''Dicraeosaurus'', ''Amargasaurus'', and ''Rebbachisaurus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macronaria Brachiosaur’s kin]]: ''Astrodon'', ''Pelorosaurus'', and ''Euhelopus''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Nobody’s]] [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanodon kin]]: ''Shunosaurus'', ''Barapasaurus'', and ''Vulcanodon''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantosaurus A few longnecks more]]: ''Atlantosaurus'' and Australian sauropods

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaur Titanic lizards]]: Titanosaurs

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplodocoidea Diplodocus’ kin]]: Diplodocoidea

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macronaria Brachiosaur’s kin]]: Macronaria

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Nobody’s]] [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanodon kin]]: ''Shunosaurus'' and ''Vulcanodon''

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantosaurus A few longnecks more]]: ''Atlantosaurus''

* OvershadowedByAwesome seems a common trope among dinosaurs. We see a dinosaur, remain struck by its awesomeness… but later, another similar yet even cooler dinosaur takes its place in our mind. ''Barosaurus'' could be an example. 8/9 m long, its neck was one of the longest in the whole Animal Kingdom, but is definitively overshadowed by the 12/15 m long neck of ''Mamenchisaurus'' (as well as that of the brachiosaurs). Discovered in USA at the end of the Bone Wars, ''Barosaurus'' was the closest relative of ''Diplodocus'', and lived as well in Late Jurassic North America; some possible remains from Africa are also known, but are fragmentary and undiagnostic. ''Barosaurus'' was virtually identical to ''Diplodocus'' except for its shorter tail counterbalanced by the longer neck. Its was one of the longest sauropods, only a bit shorter than a diplodocus. ''Barosaurus'' means “heavy lizard”: though apt for a sauropod, is not totally appropriate. Having the same slender frame of ''Diplodocus'', the barosaur weighed less than other sauropods. Its lower notoriety is probably due to the fact ''Barosaurus'' remains are less abundant than the ''Diplodocus'' ones. However, ''Barosaurus'' has gained more fame when a barosaur skeleton was mounted in the American Museum of Natural History in the 1980s. This skeleton is the dino-star of the museum, being mounted erected on the hindlimbs and the tail; 15 m tall, is shown defending its youngster from an attacking ''Allosaurus''. In the same years, one bizarre suggestion was made about its physiology: with such a long neck, ''Barosaurus'' may have had [[BeyondTheImpossible eight hearts]] to pump blood up to its lofty head. There isn’t any evidence for this idea, which is now generally discarded as “weird fantasy”.

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camarasaurus A dino-sized injustice]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mamenchisaurus The longest neck]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barosaurus Hearts, hearts everywhere]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saltasaurus The armored brontosaur]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cetiosaurus A whale of dinosaur]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanosaur Titanic lizards]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diplodocoidea Diplodocus’ kin]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Macronaria Brachiosaur’s kin]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shunosaurus Nobody’s]] [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vulcanodon kin]]

[[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantosaurus A few longnecks more]]

* When we think about “armored” dinosaurs, our mind automatically goes to things such as ''[[StockDinosaurs Stegosaurus, Triceratops, Ankylosaurus]]''. Thus, if you are a layman, you could be astonished if we tell you that there was also an armored ''sauropod''. Scientists themselves were surprised when such an animal was discovered in 1980 in the Argentinian province of Salta: they called it ''Saltasaurus'' (not “Salt'''o'''saurus”, please). The most well-known South American sauropod, and also the most classic long-neck that lived ''after'' the overused “three stock band”, it walked around 80 million years after them, almost managing to see the [[RockFallsEveryoneDies comet]]. ''Saltasaurus'' armor was different-looking than ''Ankylosaurus'' armor. It had no spikes, and was made by several small bony scutes of different size, covering all the upper parts of its torso like a mosaic. Though apparently much lighter than an ankylosaur’s, it would have been enough to defend the sauropod against predators like the contemporary “horned” ''Carnotaurus''. The scientific importance of ''Saltasaurus'' raised up even more after the discovery (made at the end of the 1990s) of a fossilized breeding-site full of nests and hatchlings, the very first known from a sauropod. These remains were attributed to ''Saltasaurus'', but we are not sure if they pertain to its genus. ''Saltasaurus'' is also a member of that subgroup of sauropods called titanosaurs (see below): since its discovery, armor plates of several other titanosaurs have since been found, although more incomplete. However, ''Saltasaurus'' was considerably smaller than many other sauropods (it was only 12 m long and not much heavier than an elephant); and, not counting the bony plates, its shape was that of a generic sauropod. This might partially explain why, despite its BadAss-look, ''Saltasaurus'' has remained a non-fictional animal unlike ''Carnotaurus''.

* What is the thing that has really made sauropods the most iconic plant-eating dinosaurs? [[RhetoricalQuestionBlunder Their size]], useless to say. But there are few doubts that their unbelievably long necks have done their part, too. But wait: if you think ''Brachiosaurus'' and ''Diplodocus'' have disproportionately vast necks, is only because you’ve never seen their Chinese cousin: ''Mamenchisaurus''. The latter’s neck was so long that, if the animal would be still alive today, we could see it drinking some water from a lake with its forelimbs placed 12 m (40 ft) or even 15 m (50 ft) from the shore! In other words: the neck of ''Mamenchisaurus'' was ''longer than a whole T. rex was from nose to tail''. This record has made ''Mamenchisaurus'' one of the most famed sauropods as well as one of the most classic Chinese dinosaurs. [[hottip:* : It’s worth noting, however, that the classic record of “Whoa the longest-neck!” is now disputed now by the fragmentary ''Sauroposeidon'']]. Discovered in 1954, ''Mamenchisaurus'' lived in the same age of the stock sauropods (Late Jurassic). Initially believed a close ''Diplodocus'' relative, now is thought a more archaic kind of sauropod which incidentally reached a similar shape, though with a much shorter tail. Since the head of ''Mamenchisaurus'' has long been unknown, the most classic portraits show it with an inaccurate ''Diplodocus''-like head; actually ''Mamenchisaurus'' head was more similar to ''Camarasaurus''. In short, the polar opposite of what has happened to the allegedly boxy ''Apatosaurus'' head. To date, the only significative apparition ''Mamenchisaurus'' has made in pop-culture was a extremely brief cameo in ''JurassicPark 2''. It was unidentified and unnamed, maybe the only dinosaur in the JurassicPark film-series that has not become Stock after that. As it seems, [[SarcasmMode four pop-cultural sauropods are just too many]].