Riojasaurus incertus - Triassic Dinosaurs
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(ree-oh-hah-sor-uhss)
"Rioja lizard"
Describer Bonaparte, 1969
Also Known As --
Type of Species incertus
Order Saurischia
SubOrder Sauropodomorpha
InfraOrder Prosauropoda
Micro-Order --
Family Riojasauridae
Size 36 feet (11 meters) long
Period Late Triassic, 225 million years ago
Fossilsite Argentina
Diet herbivore
Riojasaurus was a herbivore that lived during the Late Triassic Period, 225 million years ago in what is now Argentina. Riojasaurus was a large quadruped herbivore. One of the earliest large herbivore dinosaurs. Riojasaurus had along neck, and a small head. it may have been one of the first dinosaurs to evolve a long neck, millions of years before the long neck giants of the Jurassic Period, such as Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus. Riojasaurus mouth contained many leaf-shaped serrated teeth. Riojasaurus had a long, heavy body with elephant like legs and clawed feet. Its forelimbs were almost as long as its hindlimbs. Its leg bones were massive and solidly formed.
When first discovered scientists used to think that Riojasaurus and others like it were carnivores, not herbivores. This idea came about because sharp teeth were found among their fossilized bones, which paleontologist identified belonging to meat eating dinosaurs. But after studies of their remains proved that they have probably fallen from the mouths of carnivores as they fed from the meat of dead herbivores.
Discovery
The skeleton of this gigantic herbivore was discovered in the 1969s, in
the Valley of the Moon, a remote place in northwestern Argentina. This
valley lies in the province of la Rioja, after which the dinosaur was
named. The dinosaur name means, "lizard from Rioja".