General
The Mamenchisaurus is is a truly gigantic sauropod that is known for a variety of things, including its very long neck that is disproportionally large even for a sauropod. Sadly though, it appears some bones of other sauropods have been mixed into its genus, which presents some difficulty when attempting to determine what a true Mamenchisaurus is.
Characteristics
The single most noticeable feature of this dinosaur other than remarkable size is its long, long neck. Other than that, it’s not too visually impressive, but the usages and capacities of its neck are quite fascinating. Apparently it would have been unable to go very high up like the neck of a Brachiosaurus but rather would have been mostly straight out or stopping a little downward. This would result in mostly it being a lower plant feeder, but being able to move its neck easily to reach food without moving anything else would have surely been a boon to this animal.
| Genus: | Mamenchisaurus |
| Meaning: | “Mamenchi Lizard” |
| Discovered: | Japan |
| Class: | Sauropod |
| Size: | 26 Meters long, Height depends on neck posture. |
| Paleo Rating: | 35/42 |
| References: | Info taken from: Mamenchisaurus – Wikipedia Image from: Mamenchisaurus illustration by Sergey Krasovskiy |
Did you know?
Mamenchisaurus has potentially one of the longest necks on any animal to have ever lived.
Interesting Facts
- The Mamenchisaurus was likely capable of rearing up on its back legs and even doing some slow walking forward in that position to reach higher branches, similar to modern elephants.
- The Mamenchisaurus genus contains some members who are likely not apart of the genus and are merely similar, but for not will remain in the genus.
