Brachiosauridae reached 13 metres and browsed treetops 161 million years ago

When and where

Brachiosauridae lived from roughly 161 to 100 million years ago, spanning the Late Jurassic and into the Early Cretaceous. Fossil sites across North America, Africa, and Europe confirm the family had a global distribution. The type genus, Brachiosaurus, comes from the Morrison Formation of Colorado and Utah, while related finds in Tanzania and Portugal show these giants crossed continents when the Atlantic was still narrow.

How we know

American palaeontologist Elmer S. Riggs named Brachiosaurus altithorax in 1903 from a quarry near Fruita, Colorado. The specimen preserved much of the shoulder girdle and forelimb, immediately revealing the animal’s front-heavy build. Later expeditions to Tanzania recovered the nearly complete skeleton now known as Giraffatitan, though some researchers still class it within Brachiosaurus. Further material from Portugal and Algeria has filled in details of vertebrae, teeth, and limb proportions, giving a clearer picture of how the family varied in size across continents.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brachiosauridae

What set it apart

Members of Brachiosauridae were among the tallest land animals ever. Estimates for the largest individuals reach around 13 metres in height and 25 metres in length, with masses exceeding 40 tonnes. Their forelimbs were noticeably longer than their hind limbs, a trait that tilted the body upward and let the neck browse vegetation metres above the ground. The animals carried small, high-placed heads on extremely long necks, and their broad spoon-shaped teeth stripped leaves efficiently. Unlike Diplodocus and other whip-tailed diplodocids, brachiosaurids had a shorter, thicker tail and a more rigid torso built to support immense weight rather than to lash at rivals.

For collectors and classrooms

A Brachiosauridae model brings the sheer scale of the Jurassic canopy into any room. Hand-painted replicas show the steep shoulder slope and long forelimbs that made these sauropods unmistakable. They work equally well as a classroom anchor for a dinosaur unit or as a striking shelf display.

Pick up a detailed Brachiosauridae figure here.