Dino card No. 0218 of 2,027

Baalsaurus

Say it: BAHL-sore-us

Name means: “Baal's lizard, named after the Baal fossil site in Argentina, which itself is named after the ancient god Baal”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksLate Cretaceous

Baalsaurus was a long-necked plant-eater that lived in Argentina about 90 million years ago. It had a square-shaped jaw with teeth only at the front, like a comb for snipping leaves.1 2

Lived

94 to 86 million years ago6

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Neuquén Province, Patagonia, Argentina1 2

Food

Plants6 2

Length

up to 10.7 m3

estimate, largest known specimen

Weight

up to 6 tonnes3

estimate, largest known specimen

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 4 cars

as long as 2.5 cars parked in a rowas long as 59 bananas end to endabout as heavy as an elephantas heavy as 1200 watermelons

How big was Baalsaurus compared to YOU?

Just maths in your browser. Nothing is saved or sent anywhere.

cool stuff

Fun facts

Baalsaurus is known only from a single right lower jaw bone, called a dentary.2 6

Its jaw was L-shaped when viewed from above, forming a sharp 90-degree angle, which gave it a square snout.2

Baalsaurus had 13 tooth sockets in its jaw, with 10 teeth in the front part and the rest at the corner and side.2

The teeth were pencil-shaped, like other titanosaur sauropods, and each socket had room for at least three replacement teeth growing underneath.2

Scientists estimate Baalsaurus had a skull about 40 centimeters (16 inches) long, based on comparisons with similar dinosaurs like Bonitasaura.2

It lived during the Late Cretaceous period, about 91 to 88 million years ago, in what is now Patagonia, Argentina.1 2

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

?How big was Baalsaurus?

Nobody knows for sure because only its jaw has been found. Scientists estimate its skull was about 40 centimetres (16 inches) long, based on similar sauropods like Bonitasaura.2

?What did Baalsaurus eat?

Baalsaurus was a plant-eater. It used its square jaw and pencil-shaped teeth at the front to snip leaves.4 2

?Is Baalsaurus a dinosaur?

Yes, Baalsaurus is a dinosaur. It is a titanosaurian sauropod, a type of long-necked plant-eating dinosaur.4 5

Ask Rex about Baalsaurus

Rex only answers questions about this page. 3 questions a day.

Rex is an AI and can make mistakes. He runs on servers in the EU and questions are never saved. Never type your name or other personal things.

For dino experts

Scientific name: Baalsaurus
Named by: Calvo and Gonzalez Riga 20196
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Titanosauria6
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Titanosauria > Macronaria6
Age of the rocks: 94 to 86 million years (Turonian / Coniacian)6
Rock formations: Portezuelo6
Countries: Argentina6
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database6
Discovery: Baalsaurus was named in 2018 by paleontologists Jorge Calvo and Bernardo González Riga. The fossil was discovered by Juan Eduardo Mansilla, a museum technician, at the Baal site near Barreales Lake in Argentina.1 2
Still debated: Because only a jawbone has been found, scientists are not sure about the full size or body shape of Baalsaurus.2

Where the facts come from

Baalsaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Brazil - Baalsaurus mansillai gen. et sp. nov. a new titanosaurian sauropod (Late Cretaceous) from Neuquén, Patagonia, Argentina <i>Baalsaurus mansillai</i> gen. et sp. nov. a new titanosaurian sauropod (Late Cretaceous) from Neuquén, Patagonia, Argentina (scielo.br)
Baalsaurus mansillai | Dinosaur Database by DinoAnimals.com (dinoanimals.com)
Baalsaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
Baalsaurus mansillai gen. et sp. nov. a new titanosaurian sauropod (Late Cretaceous) from Neuquén, Patagonia, Argentina (pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov)
Baalsaurus 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.

Rex is hungry! Dino Wiki is a dad's project for his dino-loving son, free with no ads. Grown-ups can feed Rex a snack to help keep it online.Feed Rex