Fun Antarctosaurus Facts For Kids

Antarctosaurus is a genus of dinosaurs that used to live on earth during the Late Cretaceous period that is almost 90 million years ago. The initial remains of this dinosaur were found in Argentina and hence this animal was named Antarctosaurus which means 'Southern Lizard'.

The giant lizard is classified to be titanosaurian sauropods which used to live in South America and more specifically in Argentina.

Since this dinosaur was a sauropod they were huge in size with a long tail and a long neck with a small head. They were herbivorous and so used to eat the dominant plants and trees that used to grow in that era.

Although various species of this genus have been found a lot of confusion exists because of the lack of complete fossil remains.

The only remains found of this species include skull fragments, leg bones, parts of the vertebra, and jawbones. But still based on the research on the available remains von huene identified, and described a type species and a second species and named them wichmannianus and giganteus.

But still few researchers of the present generation doubt that the two different species could have been the same species but during different growth periods.

In the later years, various other remains were found that included a femur, humerus, and an incomplete backbone. After multiple studies on the fossil remain three other species of this dinosaur genus were found from various parts of the world.

They were called the Antarctosaurus brasiliensis, Antarctosaurus jaxarticus, and Antarctosaurus septentrionalis, but most scientists believe them to be a nomen dubium or an undefined titanosaur.

Antarctosaurus Interesting Facts

How do you pronounce 'Antarctosaurus'?

The fossils of this Sauropoda dinosaur were found in Argentina and in 1929 this dinosaur was properly described and named 'Antarctosaurus' by the german paleontologist Von Huene. The pronunciation of Antarctosaurus is 'An-tarc-toe-sore-us'.

What type of dinosaur was an Antarctosaurus?

Antarctosaurus are considered to be sauropods and so they were one of the largest land animals roaming on the earth. Antarctosaurus wichmannianus and Antarctosaurus giganteus are considered to be the type species and the second species of antarctosaurus but there are still uncertainties regarding the aspect.

In which geological period did the Antarctosaurus roam the earth?

Based on various fossil studies of this genus, Antarctosaurus has been considered to be a Sauropoda dinosaur from the late cretaceous period so various species of antarctosaurus used to roam the earth around 89.8-66 million years ago.

When did the Antarctosaurus become extinct?

Various research studies on this genus have shown that this animal used to roam the earth until the end of the late cretaceous period which is around 66 million years ago.

Where did an Antarctosaurus live?

The fossils of the type species of this genus were found in Argentina and research results by scientists suggest that this sauropod dinosaur used to live in South America during the late cretaceous period.

What was an Antarctosaurus's habitat?

These dinosaurs are considered sauropods and the second species of this genus were one of the largest animals that lived on land, so they were herbivorous terrestrial animals that lived in forest areas and areas with lush vegetation.

Who did an Antarctosaurus live with?

This southern lizard of South America was sauropod dinosaurs so they were herbivorous and also very social in nature. So, they used to live in groups most probably with various other herbivore dinosaurs.

How long did an Antarctosaurus live?

There is no available data regarding the full lifespan of this dinosaur from the late cretaceous period.

How did they reproduce?

Studies relating to the history of dinosaurs state that each and every species of dinosaurs had oviparous reproduction, which is they used to reproduce by laying eggs. This southern lizard is no exception so they used to reproduce by laying eggs.

Antarctosaurus Fun Facts

What did an Antarctosaurus look like?

Fossil studies have proved that this South American dinosaur belonged to the class named Sauropoda so it had a huge body with four thick legs, which were identical to pillars, a long neck with a small head, and a long tail which they often used to protect themselves from predators like carnivorous dinosaurs.

How many bones did an Antarctosaurus have?

Many skeletal remains have been found of this dinosaur from the Southern continent which included various limb bones, the femur, skull fragments, incomplete lower jaw bones, and a partial vertebra but no complete skeleton structure was ever found so the exact number of bones is not known.

How did they communicate?

The communicative methods of this dinosaur are not known but on the whole, the various communication techniques used by dinosaurs include symbolic calls, cracking sounds, visual communications, hoots, and hollers, and even a few dinosaur species are known to communicate through dances and songs.

How big was an Antarctosaurus?

Based on available evidence, an Antarctosaurus was a sauropod dinosaur so they were huge in size. The estimated length of this dinosaur is 56 ft (17 m). Although they were pretty tall with long necks the estimated height of this dinosaur is not known.

How fast could an Antarctosaurus move?

An Antarctosaurus was a dinosaur with a bulky body and they used to walk with four legs. Due to their bulky body, they were considered to be slow-moving giants very similar to that of other sauropods.

How much did an Antarctosaurus weigh?

The estimated weight of an Antarctosaurus is 81571 lb (37000 kg).

What were the male and female names of the species?

There are no separate male and female names assigned to the species.

What would you call a baby Antarctosaurus?

There is no separate name assigned for a baby Antarctosaurus.

What did they eat?

Various species of this dinosaur were considered to be herbivorous so they used to have a diet that included various trees and plants that used to grow during that period.

How aggressive were they?

This dinosaur belonged to the group of sauropods so they were not the most aggressive but under circumstances of predatory attacks, they were capable of showing defensive features using their long tails.

Did You Know...

The type species antarctosaurus wichmannianus and the second species antarctosaurus giganteus were described by the German paleontologist Friedrich von huene.

Another species named Antarctosaurus jaxarticuswas described by Anatoly Riabinin in 1938 based on a single femur from Kazakhstan but eventually considered a nomen dubium.

Fahad Moysés Arid and Luiz Dino Vizotto discovered and described another species antarctosaurus brasiliensis in 1971 but brasiliensis is also considered a nomen dubium or an unspecified titanosaur by various other researchers.

Two limb bones of the antarctosaurus giganteus were identified measuring around 7.7 ft (2.35 m), and they are considered to be the largest in the history of sauropods.

Although a lot of confusion exists, the weight of an Antarctosaurus giganteus is estimated to be around 110231.1-242508.5 lb (50000-110000 kg) making them one of the heaviest land animals known in the history of the animal kind.

The fossils associated with Antarctosaurus wichmannianus include fragments of skull, lower jaw fragments, tail vertebra, neck vertebra, fragments from the rib cage, and leg bones which includes a femur.

The fossil remains associated with the Antarctosaurus giganteus are two huge femurs, partial pubis bones, rib fragments, fragments of the caudal vertebra, and a few more bones that still are unidentified.

The species named Antarctosaurus jaxarticus was identified from a single femur, but later a paleontologist stated that the remains were not properly examined and belonged to a titanosaur clade.

The remains associated with the Brasiliensis are only two limb bones and a partial vertebra.

Except for the type species and the second species of Antarctosaurus which are wichmannianus and giganteus, all three other dinosaur species have been considered nomen dubium.

*We've been unable to source an image of Antarctosaurus and have used an image of Styracosaurus instead. If you are able to provide us with a royalty-free image of Antarctosaurus, we would be happy to credit you. Please contact us at hello@kidadl.com.

*We've been unable to source an image of Antarctosaurus and have used an image of Styracosaurus instead. If you are able to provide us with a royalty-free image of Antarctosaurus, we would be happy to credit you. Please contact us at hello@kidadl.com.