Dino card No. 0193 of 2,027

Atsinganosaurus

Say it: at-SING-gah-no-SORE-us

Name means: “gypsy lizard”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksLate Cretaceous

Atsinganosaurus was a long-necked sauropod that lived in what is now France during the Late Cretaceous. It was a plant-eater that could grow as long as a school bus. Fossils show it shared its home with another titanosaur called Garrigatitan.1 3

Lived

84 to 72 million years ago3

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Velaux-La Bastide Neuve, Provence, southern France1 3

Food

Plants3

Length

5.38 to 12 m1

estimates vary; some studies suggest up to 14 m for the largest individuals

Weight

2.46 tonnes to 5.26 tonnes1

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

as long as 2.5 cars parked in a rowas long as 67 bananas end to endas heavy as 4 carsabout as heavy as an elephantas heavy as 1100 watermelons

How big was Atsinganosaurus compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Atsinganosaurus belongs to a group of titanosaurs called Lirainosaurinae, which includes other European sauropods like Ampelosaurus and Lirainosaurus.1

Its name means 'gypsy lizard' because scientists think its ancestors migrated from the east to the west.1

The first fossils were four back vertebrae found between 2009 and 2010 in a river deposit.1

Later excavations uncovered skull fragments, teeth, ribs, and limb bones from at least three different individuals.2

Bone studies show that the discovered Atsinganosaurus were fully grown adults.2

It lived alongside other dinosaurs like the plant-eater Rhabdodon and the crocodile-like Allodaposuchus.2

AI-made picture of Atsinganosaurus — An AI-made picture of how Atsinganosaurus 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 Atsinganosaurus

?How big was Atsinganosaurus?

About 8 to 12 metres long, possibly up to 14 metres for the largest individuals. It weighed around 3.5 to 5 metric tons.1

?What did Atsinganosaurus eat?

It was a plant-eater, just like other sauropods. It ate leaves and other vegetation.3

?When did Atsinganosaurus live?

It lived during the Late Cretaceous, about 72 to 70 million years ago.1

?Where was Atsinganosaurus found?

Its fossils were found in southern France, in the Grès à Reptiles Formation near Velaux.1

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Atsinganosaurus
Named by: Garcia et al. 20103
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Lirainosaurinae3
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Titanosauria > Macronaria3
Age of the rocks: 84 to 72 million years (Campanian)3
Countries: France3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Atsinganosaurus was named in 2010 by Geraldine Garcia and her team. The fossils were found at Velaux-La Bastide Neuve in southern France.1 3
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how big Atsinganosaurus got. Different studies give different estimates for its length and weight.1

Where the facts come from

Atsinganosaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
The titanosaurian dinosaur Atsinganosaurus velauciensis (Sauropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of southern France: New material, phylogenetic affinities, and palaeobiogeographical implications (sciencedirect.com)
Atsinganosaurus 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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