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Losillasaurus

Say it: lo-SEE-lah-SORE-us
Name means: “Losilla lizard”1
Ate: PlantsLong-necksLate Jurassic to Early Cretaceous

Losillasaurus was a giant, long-necked plant-eater that lived in what is now Spain and Portugal. It was one of the biggest dinosaurs of its time, with some adults reaching the length of a blue whale!1

Lived
155 to 143 million years ago3
Late Jurassic to Early Cretaceous
Fossils found in
Villar del Arzobispo Formation in Valencia, Spain, and the Lourinhã Formation in Portugal1
Length
15 to 25 m (49 to 82 ft)1
estimate; the type specimen was a subadult, so adults may have been larger
Weight
12 tonnes to 47 tonnes (26,500 to 103,600 lb)1
Height
5.5 m (18 ft)
estimate
Top speed
about 11 km/h (7 mph)
Running, estimate
What did Losillasaurus eat?
It was a plant-eater. Its heart-shaped teeth helped it eat tough plants.

When did it live?

Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

Losillasaurus about 25 m long (82 ft)A bicycle about 1.8 m (5.9 ft)A car about 4.5 m (15 ft)An elephant, the biggest land animal today about 6.5 m (21 ft)

How tall was it?

A horseabout 1.6 m (5.2 ft)An elephantabout 3.2 m (10 ft)Losillasaurusabout 5.5 m tall (18 ft)A giraffeabout 5.5 m (18 ft)

estimate

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 8 elephants
as long as 6 cars parked in a rowas long as 140 bananas end to endas heavy as 9400 watermelonsas heavy as 75 whole school classes of kidsas heavy as 100 polar bearstall enough to peek into a window on floor 2could run 100 metres in 33 seconds (the fastest human needs 9.6)

How big was Losillasaurus compared to YOU?

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How fast was it?

cool stuff

Fun facts

1

Losillasaurus had a very long humerus (upper arm bone) that measured 143 centimetres (56 inches) long, even though the specimen was not fully grown.1

2

The neural spines on its tail vertebrae were shaped like cutlasses, a unique feature that helps scientists identify this dinosaur.2

3

Losillasaurus lived during the Late Jurassic and possibly into the Early Cretaceous, about 157 to 145 million years ago.1

4

The largest Losillasaurus individuals may have weighed as much as 47 tonnes (52 short tons), similar to several elephants combined.1

5

Losillasaurus belongs to a group of sauropods called Turiasauria, which includes other giants like Turiasaurus.3

6

The first fossils of Losillasaurus were discovered near the village of Losilla in Valencia, Spain, by a local teacher who was also an amateur archaeologist.2

AI-madeAI-made picture of Losillasaurus
An AI-made picture of how Losillasaurus 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 Losillasaurus

?How big was Losillasaurus?

Estimates vary. One study suggests 15 to 18 metres (49 to 59 ft) long and 12 to 15 tonnes (13 to 17 short tons). But the largest adults may have reached 25 metres (82 ft) and weighed about 47 tonnes (52 short tons).1

?What did Losillasaurus eat?

It was a plant-eater. Its heart-shaped teeth helped it eat tough plants.1

?When did Losillasaurus live?

It lived during the Late Jurassic and possibly into the Early Cretaceous, about 157 to 145 million years ago.1

?Where was Losillasaurus found?

Its fossils were discovered near the village of Losilla in Valencia, Spain, and also in the Lourinhã Formation of Portugal.1

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Scientific name
Losillasaurus
Named by
Casanovas et al. 20013
Group
Long-necks
Family / clade
Turiasauria3
Classification
Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda3
Age of the rocks
155 to 143 million years (Kimmeridgian / Tithonian)3
Rock formations
Villar del Arzobispo, Praia da Amoreira-Porto Novo3
Countries
Spain, Portugal3
Fossil records
3 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery
Losillasaurus was named in 2001 by Casanovas, Santafé, and Sanz based on fossils found near Losilla, Spain. The fossils were excavated between 1989 and 1995.12
Still debated
Scientists are not sure exactly how big adult Losillasaurus could grow, because the best-known specimen is a subadult.1

Where the facts come from

  1. Losillasaurus (en.wikipedia.org)
  2. Losillasaurus giganteus, a new sauropod from the transitional Jurassic Cretaceous of the Los Serranos basin (Valencia, Spain) (naturalhistory.si.edu)
  3. Losillasaurus 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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