Sauropodomorpha: Your New Favorite Family of Herbivores

by Max Moreno, age 10

Sauropodomorpha species are known for their long necks! They were the most widespread dinosaurs on Earth and have many look alike species that can be compared to each other.

There are two groups of sauropodomorpha species called sauropods and prosauropods. The prosauropods walked on four legs, making them quadrupeds and they lived during the early Jurassic period. The prosauropods evolved to the sauropods, which were longer and lighter because of their hollow necks.

Some species of the Sauropods are the Apatosaurus and Seismosaurus. They are some of the older species that came before the Jobaria and Plateosaurus. These dinosaurs had really long necks and small heads and can measure over 100 feet. They were herbivores which meant they were plant eaters. The teeth of the dinosaur were too weak to chew leaves, so they swallowed rocks which broke down food in the stomach.

It's amazing to know how many dinosaurs were on Earth and how many have long necks. The apatosaurus, seismosaurus, and jobaria are only a couple examples of these species. These extremely huge, long necked dinosaurs roamed the Earth millions of years ago but these dinosaurs disappeared before the asteroid hit. A theory is that a flash flood wiped them out.

With more research and study on the fossils on these creatures, we can learn more about the history of this planet and the creatures that thrived on its lands millions of years ago.

[Source: Encyclopedia britannica]