Sauropods

Australian Sauropods

Sauropods were gigantic, long-necked, quadrupedal (walked on four legs) herbivores (plant-eaters).

They probably ate foliage from conifers, cycads and ferns. Their teeth were blunt and good for stripping off vegetation, but they were unable to chew.

Sauropod tracks are common in the Broome Sandstone and indicate that vast herds of these great herbivores once roamed the Dinosaur Coast.

2 meters to
5.5 meters

They had five-toed feet and were massive.

10.5 meters to 30 meters

Estimated lengths (approximately).

Similar to birds and crocodiles, they swallowed stones that helped to grind up the tough plant fibres in their stomachs. Leaves, twigs and roots are low in calories, so sauropods had to eat a huge quantity of plants and had large digestive systems to deal with all this tough plant fibre.

At least six different types of sauropod tracks have been identified on the Dinosaur Coast

Oobardjidama foulkesi (Foulkes’ little thunder)
Broome sauropod morphotype A
Broome sauropod morphotype B
Broome sauropod morphotype C
Broome sauropod morphotype D
Broome sauropod morphotype E

Morphotypes are distinct types of tracks without a formal name.

Well known sauropods

Apatosaurus ajax,
Brachiosaurus altithorax,
Diamantinasaurus matildae (in Australia),

What did sauropods look like?

Palaeontologists examine clues that extinct dinosaurs have left behind, found in fossils and evidence of animal activity, such as footprints and trackways. This is what ‘Broome’ sauropods may have looked like.

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