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Igai

Say it: ee-GUY

Name means: “Igai is named after the 'lord of the oasis' deity from ancient Egyptian mythology, and 'semkhu' means 'the forgotten'.”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksLate Cretaceous

Igai was a giant, long-necked plant-eater that stomped through what is now Egypt about 74 million years ago. It was a titanosaur, a group of sauropods known for their huge bodies and small heads. Even though it was big, it was actually one of the smaller titanosaurs!1 2

Lived

84 to 72 million years ago4

Late Cretaceous

Fossils found in

Fossils were found in the Kharga Oasis, Western Desert of Egypt, in the Quseir Formation.1 2

Food

Plants3

Length

10 to 15 m2

estimated from comparisons with other titanosaurs

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

as long as 3 cars parked in a rowas long as 83 bananas end to end

How big was Igai compared to YOU?

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

cool stuff

Fun facts

Igai had air sacs inside its backbone bones, making them light and spongy, which helped it grow so large.2

Its fifth metacarpal (a bone in the hand) had two unique bumps on the inner side that no other titanosaur has.2

Igai was more slender than many other titanosaurs, with leg bones that were relatively thin and graceful.2

The first and second metatarsals (foot bones) had deep grooves on their upper surfaces, a feature not seen in other titanosaurs.2

Igai lived about 74 million years ago, during the Campanian stage of the Late Cretaceous.2

Igai was probably bigger than its close relative Mansourasaurus, which was about 8 to 10 metres long.2

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

?How big was Igai?

Igai was about 10 to 15 metres long, which is bigger than its relative Mansourasaurus at 8 to 10 metres.2 1

?What did Igai eat?

Igai was a plant-eater, like all sauropods. It used its long neck to reach leaves and plants.2

?When did Igai live?

Igai lived about 74 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period.2 1

?Where was Igai found?

Igai was found in the Kharga Oasis in Egypt, in rocks called the Quseir Formation.2 1

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Myth buster

Myth: Igai was a giant, slow-moving beast like other sauropods.

Truth: Igai was actually relatively small and slender for a titanosaur, and its limb bones suggest it was quite agile for its size.2

For dino experts

Scientific name: Igai
Named by: Gorscak et al. 20234
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Saltasauridae4
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda > Titanosauria > Macronaria4
Age of the rocks: 84 to 72 million years (Campanian)4
Rock formations: Quseir4
Countries: Egypt4
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: Fossils of Igai were first found in 1977 by German scientists in the Kharga Oasis, Egypt. It was named and described in 2023 by Gorscak and colleagues.2 3
Still debated: Scientists are still debating whether Igai was fully grown when it died, because some bones suggest it might not have been completely mature.1

Where the facts come from

tandfonline.com (tandfonline.com)
Igai (en.wikipedia.org)
PBDB Taxon (paleobiodb.org)
Igai 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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