Isanosaurus

Isanosaurus was one of the earliest sauropods, the group that later included giants like Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus.1

Its thigh bone is 76 centimetres long and very straight, showing it had column-like legs for walking on all fours.1

The only known skeleton was found in 1998 near the village of Ban Non Thaworn, but most of it had already eroded away.1

Isanosaurus had neck vertebrae that were ball-and-socket joints, making its neck flexible.1

Scientists used to think Isanosaurus lived in the Late Triassic, but in 2026 new dating showed it lived in the Early Jurassic.1

The tail vertebrae of Isanosaurus were hollow at both ends, like a double-sided cup.1