Dino card No. 0106 of 2,027

Andesaurus

Say it: AN-də-SOR-əs

Name means: “Andes lizard”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksEarly Cretaceous

Andesaurus was a giant, long-necked plant-eater that stomped through what is now Argentina about 111 million years ago. It was one of the earliest titanosaurs, the group that later included the biggest land animals ever. Even though it was huge, it probably had a small head and a long tail to balance its neck.1 3

Lived

113 to 110 million years ago3

Early Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Argentina (Neuquén Province, Patagonia)1 3

Food

Plants3 1

Length

15 to 18 m1

estimates based on partial skeleton

Weight

7 tonnes1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 5 cars

as long as 4 cars parked in a rowas long as 100 bananas end to endabout as heavy as an elephantas heavy as 1400 watermelons

How big was Andesaurus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Andesaurus had tail bones that were flat at both ends, which is unusual for titanosaurs, and its back vertebrae had extra joints that made its spine stiffer.2

The only known skeleton includes four back vertebrae, 27 tail vertebrae, parts of the hips, a shoulder blade, and a leg bone, but no skull.1

It lived alongside the giant meat-eater Giganotosaurus, one of the biggest predators ever, in the same ancient river system.1

Andesaurus is one of the most primitive titanosaurs known, meaning it branched off early in the group's history.1

Its fossils were found in rocks that were once a braided river, full of sand and gravel, where it probably walked in herds.1

The name honors the Andes Mountains, because the bones were found near them, and also the man who discovered the skeleton, Alejandro Delgado.1

AI-made picture of Andesaurus — An AI-made picture of how Andesaurus might have looked, made by a computer from what scientists know. It is a guess: the real animal may have looked different, and nobody knows its true colours.

you asked

Most asked questions about Andesaurus

?How big was Andesaurus?

Andesaurus was about 15 to 18 metres (49 to 59 feet) long and weighed around 7 tonnes (7.7 short tons).1

?What did Andesaurus eat?

Andesaurus was a plant-eater. Like most sauropods, it had a small head and long neck to reach plants.1

?When did Andesaurus live?

Andesaurus lived during the Early Cretaceous, about 111 to 106 million years ago.1

?Where was Andesaurus found?

Its fossils were found in the Candeleros Formation of Neuquén Province, Argentina, near the Andes Mountains.1

?Was Andesaurus bigger than T. rex?

Yes, Andesaurus was much longer, up to 18 metres (59 feet), while T. rex was about 12 metres (40 feet) long.1

?Is Andesaurus a dinosaur?

Yes, Andesaurus is a dinosaur. It is a sauropod, a type of long-necked plant-eating dinosaur.1

Ask Rex about Andesaurus

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Myth buster

Myth: Some people think Andesaurus was as big as the later titanosaurs like Argentinosaurus, which were over 30 metres long.

Truth: Actually, Andesaurus was much smaller, only about 15 to 18 metres long, and weighed around 7 tonnes, so it was a medium-sized sauropod.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Andesaurus
Named by: Calvo and Bonaparte 19913
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Titanosauria3
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Titanosauria > Macronaria3
Age of the rocks: 113 to 110 million years (Albian)3
Rock formations: Candeleros3
Countries: Argentina3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: The skeleton was found in May 1987 by Alejandro Delgado during a paleontological expedition in Neuquén Province, Argentina. Scientists Jorge Calvo and José Bonaparte named it Andesaurus delgadoi in 1991.1 2
Still debated: Scientists are still debating whether Andesaurus is a true titanosaur or an even more primitive sauropod, because its bones show a mix of old and new features.1

Where the facts come from

Andesaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
INTRODUCTION (naturalhistory.si.edu)
Andesaurus in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.

Every fact on this page has a number that points to its source. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are dino fans, not a science journal. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.

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