Maraapunisaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation of western North America. Originally named Amphicoelias fragillimus, it has sometimes been estimated to be the largest dinosaur specimen ever discovered. Based on surviving descriptions of a single fossil bone, scientists have produced numerous size estimates over the years; the largest estimate M. fragillimus to have been the longest known animal at 58 metres (190 ft) in length with a mass of 150 tonnes. However, because the only fossil remains were lost at some point after being studied and described in the 1870s, evidence survived only in contemporary drawings and field notes.
Comparison of Maraapunisaurus (left) with the rebbachisaurids Rebbachisaurus (center) and Histriasaurus (right).
Neural spine of Maraapunisaurus as drawn by E.D. Cope with parts labeled. The key rebbachisaurid features are the spinopostzygapophyseal laminae that extends dorsomedially from the postzygapophyses to join and form the postspinal lamina, and the pneumatic neural spine and arch. Other rebbachisaurid features include the rather simple ("attenuated") structure of the neural spine and the respective inclinations of the centrodiapophyseal lamina and the postzygodiapophyseal laminae.
Illustration of M. fragillimus fossils, with an alligator femur (A) for scale, drawn in 1884
Edward Drinker Cope was the only paleontologist to study M. fragillimus before its only known specimen disappeared
Sauropoda, whose members are known as sauropods, is a clade of saurischian ('lizard-hipped') dinosaurs. Sauropods had very long necks, long tails, small heads, and four thick, pillar-like legs. They are notable for the enormous sizes attained by some species, and the group includes the largest animals to have ever lived on land. Well-known genera include Apatosaurus, Argentinosaurus,
Alamosaurus, Brachiosaurus, Camarasaurus, Diplodocus, and Mamenchisaurus.
Sauropoda
Reconstruction of Ampelosaurus
Some sauropods, such as Alamosaurus sanjuanensis, formed herds segregated by age.
Cast of Toni, a juvenile brachiosaurus (restored as a diplodocid)