Name:
Brachytrachelopan (Greek for "short-necked shepherd"); pronounced BRACK-ee-track-ELL-oh-pan
Habitat:
Plains of South America
Historical Period:
Late Jurassic (150 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 30 feet long; weight unknown
Diet:
Plants
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Unusually short neck; long tail
About Brachytrachelopan:
Brachytrachelopan is one of those rare exceptions that prove the rule, the "rule" being that all sauropods (giant, plodding, plant-eating dinosaurs) had long necks. When it was discovered a few years ago, Brachytrachelopan shocked paleontologists with its stunted neck, about half as long as that of other sauropods. The most convincing explanation for this unusual feature is that Brachytrachelopan subsisted on a particular type of vegetation that grew a few feet above the ground.
By the way, the story behind Brachytrachelopan's unusual name (which means "short-necked shepherd") is that its fossils were discovered by a South American shepherd out looking for his lost sheep; Pan is the half-goat, half-human god of Greek legend.
