Diplodocid facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Diplodocids |
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| Diplodocus carnegii skeleton cast, Berlin Hauptbahnhof | |
Scientific classification  |
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| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Suborder: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Clade: | †Flagellicaudata |
| Family: | †Diplodocidae Marsh, 1884 |
| Type species | |
| †Diplodocus longus Marsh, 1878
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| Subgroups | |
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Diplodocids, or members of the family Diplodocidae ("double beams"), are a group of sauropod dinosaurs. The family includes some of the longest creatures ever to walk the earth, including Diplodocus and Supersaurus, which may have reached lengths of up to 34 metres (112 ft).
With their peg-like teeth they could strip leaves from branches, and leave the grinding to gastroliths. They bacteria in their vast stomachs would break down the cellulose in the leaves, and the product would be absorbed further on in the alimentary canal.
The diplodocids have two sub-families:
- Diplodocinae: Diplodocus and other long, slender forms.
- Apatosaurinae: Apatosaurus and other stockier types.
Their cousins the brachiosaurs are put into a sister family. The much later titanosaurs were the last group of sauropods on Earth.
Images for kids
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Diplodocus, depicted with spines limited to the mid-line of the back
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Seismosaurus (=Diplodocus)
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Skin impression of a diplodocid, specimen CMC VP 10659
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Holotype specimens of Diplodocus carnegii and Apatosaurus louisae at Carnegie Museum of Natural History
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Cast skeleton of Brontosaurus parvus based on the University of Wyoming specimen produced by Triebold Paleontology Incorporated
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Diplodocid heads have historically been restored in various ways: a) skull, b) classic rendering of the head with nostrils on top, c) with speculative trunk, d) modern depiction with nostrils low on the snout and a possible resonating chamber
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See also
In Spanish: Diplodócidos para niños
