Astrodon facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Astrodon |
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| Life restoration | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | |
| Class: | |
| Order: | |
| Suborder: | |
| Infraorder: | |
| Genus: |
Astrodon
|
Astrodon (which means "star-tooth") was a type of dinosaur with a very long neck. It was a plant-eater, much like its famous relative, the Brachiosaurus. This amazing sauropod dinosaur grew to be about 30 feet (9 meters) long.
Astrodon lived during the Lower Cretaceous period. This was a long, long time ago, roughly 130 million to 120 million years ago. Its remains, mostly teeth and scattered bones, have been found in Maryland, USA. In fact, Astrodon is so important to Maryland that it's the state's official dinosaur!
Discovering Astrodon
Astrodon was first named by a person named Johnston in 1859. The main type of Astrodon is called A. johnstoni. For a while, scientists wondered if Astrodon was the same as another dinosaur called Pleurocoelus.
Astrodon's Family Tree
In 2005, scientists Kenneth Carpenter and Virginia Tidwell looked closely at the dinosaur bones found in the Arundel Formation in Maryland. They agreed that there was only one main type of long-necked dinosaur from that area: Astrodon johnstoni. They also found something interesting: most of the Astrodon bones they studied belonged to young, growing dinosaurs. This led them to believe that two other dinosaur species, P. nanus and P. altus, which were named by another scientist named Marsh, were actually just different growth stages of Astrodon johnstoni. So, it seems these smaller dinosaurs were simply younger Astrodon individuals.
Images for kids
-
Astrodon holotype tooth
-
Plate XIII from Cretaceous Reptiles of the United States, showing teeth of Astrodon on the bottom left
-
Vertebrae of P. nanus
-
Skeleton of a juvenile in Maryland
See also
In Spanish: Astrodon johnstoni para niños
