Name:
Camelotia ("from Camelot"); pronounced CAM-ell-OH-tee-ah
Habitat:
Woodlands of England
Historical Period:
Late Triassic-Early Jurassic (205-195 million years ago)
Size and Weight:
About 30 feet long and 2 tons
Diet:
Plants
Distinguishing Characteristics:
Low-slung trunk; sauropod-like thigh bones
About Camelotia:
If the name Camelotia sounds familiar, that's because Camelot was the mythical castle of King Arthur and his knights. As you can guess, this early herbivore was discovered in England; it was first named Avalonianus (after Avalon, another name from English myth), which turned out to have already been assigned to another creature.
Paleontologists aren't quite sure what to make of Camelotia. Parts of its anatomy (such as its thigh bones) are very similar to later sauropods, but other parts are more primitive, indicating that this dinosaur may not have technically been a sauropod but a prosauropod (a "before sauropod," by Greek nomenclature).
