Suuwassea

Soo-wah-see-ah.
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Cassidy Wood

Paleoentomologist

Cassidy Wood uncovers the tiny yet significant world of prehistoric insects. Her research on amber-preserved specimens has revealed intricate details about ancient ecosystems.

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Name

Suuwassea ‭(‬Ancient Thunder‭)‬.

Phonetic

Soo-wah-see-ah.

Named By

J.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Harris & P.‭ ‬Dodson‭ ‬-‭ ‬2004.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Sauropoda,‭ ‬Diplodocoidea.

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

S.‭ ‬emilieae‭

Size

Estimated about‭ ‬14-‭ ‬15‭ ‬meters long.

Known locations

USA,‭ ‬Montana,‭ ‬Carbon County‭ ‬-‭ ‬Morrison Formation.

Time Period

Tithonian‭? ‬of the Jurassic.

Fossil representation

Partial post cranial skeleton.

In Depth

       Although it seems to have lived towards the end of the Jurassic,‭ ‬Suuwassea appears to have been a basal diplodocid sauropod dinosaur that was more primitive in form than other better known sauropods such as Diplodocus and Apatosaurus.‭ ‬This would make Suuwassea a late surviving form.‭ ‬At an estimated length approaching fifteen meters,‭ ‬the Suuwassea holotype individual would have been considerably smaller than many other North American diplodocids,‭ ‬and perhaps at greater risk from predatory theroopd dinosaurs similar to genera such as Allosaurus and Torvosaurus.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬A new diplodocoid sauropod dinosaur from the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation of Montana,‭ ‬USA.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Acta Palaeontologica Polonica‭ ‬49‭(‬2‭)‬:197-210‭ ‬-‭ ‬J.‭ ‬D.‭ ‬Harris and P.‭ ‬Dodson‭ ‬-‭ ‬2004.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT