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Seitaad

Say it: SAY-tahd

Name means: “sand monster in Navajo folklore”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksEarly Jurassic

Seitaad was an early long-necked dinosaur that lived about 190 million years ago. It was a plant-eater that walked on two legs and could also use all fours. This dinosaur is one of the most complete fossils ever found in the Navajo Sandstone of Utah.3 1

Lived

193 to 175 million years ago3

Early Jurassic

Fossils found in

San Juan County, Utah, USA3 1

Food

Plants3

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

cool stuff

Fun facts

Seitaad's name comes from a Navajo legend about a sand monster that buried its victims in dunes.1

The only known fossil of Seitaad was found at the base of a collapsed sand dune, which may have buried the animal after it died.1

Seitaad is one of the few early sauropodomorph dinosaurs known from North America.1

The species name ruessi honors Everett Ruess, a young artist and explorer who disappeared in southern Utah in 1934.1

Seitaad had a plate-like bone on its shoulder blade that helped support its arm.1

This dinosaur lived during the Early Jurassic period, when the climate was warm and deserts covered much of the area.1

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

?How big was Seitaad?

About 3 to 4.5 metres long and 1 metre tall at the hips. It weighed around 70 to 90 kilograms, about the size of a large human.2

?What did Seitaad eat?

Seitaad ate plants. It had leaf-shaped teeth and a small head, just like its later giant relatives the sauropods.2

?Could Seitaad walk on two legs?

Yes, Seitaad could walk on two legs or on all fours. It had a long neck and tail, and a large curved claw on its thumb.2

?When did Seitaad live?

Seitaad lived during the Early Jurassic Period, about 183 to 190 million years ago. That is millions of years before the famous giant sauropods like Diplodocus.2

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For dino experts

Scientific name: Seitaad
Named by: Sertich and Loewen 20103
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Sauropodiformes3
Classification: Sauropodomorpha3
Age of the rocks: 193 to 175 million years (Pliensbachian / Toarcian)3
Rock formations: Navajo Sandstone3
Countries: USA3
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database3
Discovery: Seitaad was named by scientists Joseph Sertich and Michael Loewen in 2010. The partial skeleton was found in the Navajo Sandstone of southern Utah, near a cliff dwelling called Eagle's Nest.3 1
Still debated: Scientists are not sure exactly how Seitaad is related to other early sauropodomorphs, because its fossils do not give a clear family tree.1

Where the facts come from

pone.0009789 1..17 (journals.plos.org)
New Dinosaur from Utah’s Red Rocks – UNews Archive (archive.unews.utah.edu)
Seitaad 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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