Файл:Apatosaurus ajax skull.jpg

Apatosaurus ajax Marsh, 1877 sauropod dinosaur skull from the Jurassic of Utah, USA (public display, CMC VP 7180, Cincinnati Museum of Natural History & Science, Cincinnati, Ohio, USA).

This is one of the few Apatosaurus/Brontosaurus sauropod dinosaur skulls in existence. It is articulated with several anterior neck vertebrae, which verifies its generic identity. It's likely species ID is Apatosaurus ajax (see Barrett et al., 2011).

Classification: Animalia, Chordata, Vertebrata, Dinosauria, Sauropodomorpha, Diplodocidae

Stratigraphy: Brushy Basin Member, Morrison Formation, Upper Jurassic

Locality: Emery County, Utah, USA

Reference cited:

Barret, P.M., G.W. Storrs, M.T. Young & L.M. Witmer. 2011. A new skull of Apatosaurus and its taxonomic and palaeobiological implications. p. 5 in 59th Annual Symposium of Vertebrate Palaeontology and Comparative Anatomy, Abstracts of Presentations, Lyme Regis, Dorset, UK, September 12th-17th 2011.

Sauropod dinosaurs were the largest terrestrial animals ever. They all have the same basic body plan: large body with four walking legs, very long neck & tail, and a small head relative to body size. Sauropods were herbivores, and are often perceived as holding their heads & necks up high to reach vegetation normally out of reach to other organisms. Modern reconstructions of many sauropod species depict them with heads and necks held close to the horizontal, or at low angles above the horizontal.