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The Biggest Dinosaurs Ever

In 1842, Sir Richard Owens introduced the word "dinosauria" to designate a variety of extinct terrestrial reptiles. Many other large reptiles, also extinct, were not dinosaurs, strictly speaking, and some dinosaurs were smaller than a full-grown rooster. The dinosaurs formed two distinct groups: the ornithischians, often called "bird pelvis" dinosaurs and the saurischians, or "reptile pelvis" ones, which included the giant herbivore sauropods, and the two-legged theropod carnivores. Several members of the saurischians have come to stand as symbols of gigantism among the dinosaurs.

Brachiosaurus
- Including its tail, the brachiosaurus was 25 meters long, and the weight of the largest of these animals has been estimated at about 40 to 50 tons. A sauropod, its hindlimbs were massive, long and pillarlike, and the great mass of its body was centered in the pelvic region, the posterior part of the trunk, or main body, and the anterior part of the tail. The trunk and neck had very large vertebrae and openings that served to reduce its weight. It existed in the late Jurassic period of the Mesozoic era in South Africa. It was partially quadrupedal and primarily herbivorous.
Apatosaurus
- Formerly called brontosaurus, the apatosaurus was a massive animal, attaining a length of about 70 feet or 21 meters and weighing around 30 tons. These giant creatures flourished during the Jurassic period and continued to the end of the Cretaceous period in somewhat reduced numbers. Like the brachiosaurus, it was a sauropod with long, massive, pillar-like hindlimbs, terminated by elephant-like padded feet. Its tail tapered rapidly into a very long, slender, whip-like structure. The apatosaurus was a herbivore and fully quadrupedal.
Tyrannosaurus
- The tyrannosaurus was 15 meters in length and weighed about eight tons. During the Cretaceous period, it was the largest carnivorous animal that existed. Its head was proportionately large and apparently in response to the need for weight reduction, it possessed long, narrow openings of the bony structure without a loss of strength. Its massive jaws were set with long, knife-like teeth well-suited to tear apart the flesh of prey, which was probably any one of the large herbivorous dinosaurs and other large and medium-sized reptiles. In the Jurassic period, this bipedal theropod's victims were mostly the sauropods and the stegosaurs.
Ankylosaurus
- The ankylosaurus has appropriately been called the "reptilian tank." Unlike the first three, this armored dinosaur was an ornistischian. Primarily Cretaceous in age, its fossils have been found in North America, Europe, Asia and South America. Large representatives were up to 35 feet long. It had alternating rows of large and small polygonal plates, which formed a mosaic over its body; protective spines over the legs; rings of armor; and spikes on the tail. Its body tended to be broad and flat, and the limbs were short and heavy. It was a very slow-moving quadrupedal herbivore.

Nature