Ledumahadi
Ledumahadi was a huge, long-necked plant-eater that lived in what is now South Africa. It was one of the first really giant dinosaurs, weighing as much as 12 metric tons!2
When did it live?
Fun facts
Ledumahadi walked on four legs, but its arms were not straight like later giant sauropods. Its elbows were slightly bent.2
This dinosaur was about 14 years old when it died, and scientists know this from looking at the growth rings in its bones.2
Ledumahadi lived right after the big extinction at the end of the Triassic Period, about 200 million years ago.2
Its name means 'giant thunderclap' in the Sesotho language of southern Africa.1
Ledumahadi is not a true sauropod, but a close relative called a sauropodomorph. It shows that giant size evolved in this group before the true sauropods appeared.2
The only known fossil of Ledumahadi includes parts of its backbone, arm bones, and a toe claw.2
Most asked questions about Ledumahadi
?How big was Ledumahadi?
About 12 metric tons (13 short tons), as heavy as two adult African elephants. It was the largest land animal of its time.13
?What did Ledumahadi eat?
It was a plant-eater, a herbivore that ate leaves and other plants.1
?Is Ledumahadi a dinosaur?
Yes, it is a dinosaur. It is a sauropodomorph, a close relative of the long-necked sauropods like Brontosaurus.1
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For dino experts
- Scientific name
- Ledumahadi
- Named by
- McPhee et al. 20184
- Group
- Long-necks
- Family / clade
- Sauropodiformes4
- Classification
- Sauropodomorpha4
- Age of the rocks
- 201 to 193 million years (Hettangian / Sinemurian)4
- Rock formations
- Elliot4
- Countries
- South Africa4
- Fossil records
- 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
- Discovery
- Ledumahadi was named in 2018 by Blair McPhee and colleagues. The fossils were found on a farm in South Africa.2
- Still debated
- Scientists are still debating exactly how Ledumahadi walked. Its bent elbows suggest it was not as stiff-legged as later giant sauropods.2
Where the facts come from
- Ledumahadi (en.wikipedia.org)
- A Giant Dinosaur from the Earliest Jurassic of South Africa and the Transition to Quadrupedality in Early Sauropodomorphs: Current Biology (cell.com)
- New 12-Ton Jurassic Dinosaur Unearthed in South Africa | National Geographic (nationalgeographic.com)
- Ledumahadi in The Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0): age, places, rock formations, classification.
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