Whats the Different Between a Apatosaurus and a Brontosaurus??

Answer 1

Apatosaurus (IPA: [/əˈpæ.təˌsɔː.rəs/]), previously known as Brontosaurus, is a genus of sauropod dinosaurs that lived about 140 million years ago, during the Jurassic Period. They were some of the largest land animals that ever existed, about 4.5 metres (15 feet) tall at the hips, with a length of up to 21 m (70 feet) and a mass up to 35 metric tonnes (40 tons). Their name means 'deceptive lizard', so-named because the chevron bones were like those of Mosasaurus (Greek apatelos or apatelios meaning 'deceptive' and sauros meaning 'lizard').

Answer 2

Brontosaurus differs from Apatosaurus in having a narrower neck. It's important to note that Elosaurus and Eobrontosaurus have been re-assigned to Brontosaurus, meaning that Apatosaurus is restricted to just a few specimens from Colorado and Dinosaur National Monument.

Answer 3

The first to describe the Apatosaurus (O.C.Marsh in 1877) did so from fossils of a juvenile dinosaur. When the Brontosaurus was described 2 years later, he believed it to be a different specie because it was a much larger adult and he thought it could not be the same genus. Since it IS the same specie, the first name has to have priority.

Answer 4

The man who discovered the fossils (can't remember his name, but I think he was a Yank) called it Brontosaurus (Thunder lizard) because he didn't bother to check if someone else had discovered it first. Someone else had discovered it beforehand and had named it Apatosaurus (deceptive lizard). This ignoramous' ****-up persisted for many years amongst others who never checked.
Either way, you wouldn't want one as a pet - unless you were in the manure trade.

Answer 5

Nothing, they changed the name from Brontosaurus to apatosaurus, which is apparently more correct

Answer 6

None! One name replaced the other (shame!)

Answer 7

"Apa" and "Bron"