Dino card No. 1904 of 2,027

Vulcanodon

Say it: vul-KAN-oh-don

Name means: “volcano tooth”1

Ate: PlantsLong-necksEarly Jurassic

Vulcanodon was an early long-necked dinosaur that walked on four legs. It lived in a hot, desert-like place in southern Africa during the Early Jurassic, about 199 to 188 million years ago.1 4

Lived

200 to 184 million years ago4

Early Jurassic

Fossils found in

Zimbabwe, on an island in Lake Kariba1

Food

Plants1 4

Length

6.5 to 11 m1 2

Scientists give different estimates, from about 6.5 m to 11 m

Weight

3.5 tonnes to 10.3 tonnes1

Height

2.5 to 3 m3

at the hips

When did it live?

Triassic

Jurassic

Cretaceous

252 million years ago20114566, the asteroid

How big was it?

How long was it?

How tall was it?

at the hips

How heavy was it?

as heavy as 7 cars

as long as 2.5 cars parked in a rowas long as 61 bananas end to endas heavy as 1.5 elephantsas heavy as 2100 watermelonsas tall as 1.5 doors stacked up

How big was Vulcanodon compared to YOU?

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cool stuff

Fun facts

Vulcanodon was one of the earliest known sauropods, but it was much smaller than later giants like Brachiosaurus.1

Its name comes from the volcano god Vulcan, because its bones were found near ancient lava flows.1

The knife-shaped teeth found near its skeleton actually belonged to a meat-eating theropod, not to Vulcanodon itself.1

Vulcanodon lived in a desert-like environment, which shows that early sauropods did not need to live in swamps.1

Its thighbone was about 110 centimetres (43 inches) long.1

Vulcanodon was fully four-legged, but its limb proportions were in between those of earlier two-legged relatives and later sauropods.1

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

?How big was Vulcanodon?

Vulcanodon was about 11 metres long and weighed around 3.5 to 10.3 metric tons, depending on the estimate.1 2

?What did Vulcanodon eat?

Vulcanodon was a herbivore, meaning it ate plants.1 2

?When did Vulcanodon live?

Vulcanodon lived during the Early Jurassic Period, about 199 to 188 million years ago.1 2

?Where was Vulcanodon found?

Vulcanodon was discovered in 1969 on an island in Lake Kariba, in northern Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia).1

?Was Vulcanodon a dinosaur?

Yes, Vulcanodon was a dinosaur. It was an early sauropod, a type of long-necked, plant-eating dinosaur.1 2

?Why is it called Vulcanodon?

Its name means 'volcano tooth' because its fossils were found near ancient lava flows, and it was named after the Roman god of fire, Vulcan.1

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Myth buster

Myth: Vulcanodon was a meat-eater because of the sharp teeth found with it.

Truth: Those teeth belonged to a different dinosaur, a theropod. Vulcanodon itself was a plant-eater.1

For dino experts

Scientific name: Vulcanodon
Named by: Raath 19724
Group: Long-necks
Family / clade: Sauropoda4
Classification: Sauropodomorpha > Sauropoda4
Age of the rocks: 200 to 184 million years (Sinemurian / Pliensbachian)4
Rock formations: Forest Sandstone4
Countries: Zimbabwe4
Fossil records: 1 in the Paleobiology Database4
Discovery: The first bone was found in July 1969 by B. A. Gibson on an island in Lake Kariba, Zimbabwe. Paleontologist Michael Raath named and described it in 1972.1
Still debated: Scientists still debate exactly how old Vulcanodon is, with estimates ranging from about 199 to 183 million years ago.1

Where the facts come from

Vulcanodon (en.wikipedia.org)
Vulcanodon | Natural History Museum (nhm.ac.uk)
All about Vulcanodon (animalia.bio)
Vulcanodon 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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