An illustrated record book of sauropod facts and figures—the hugest, the oldest, the most intelligent, and more
The sauropod dinosaurs roamed the planet for millions of years, with creatures ranging from the smallest of the sauropods, Magyarosaurus, to the huge Argentinosaurus. This illustrated book of records is an essential compendium of sauropod facts and figures—from the biggest and the oldest to the smallest and the rarest. It covers every known species and features more than 2,000 diagrams and technical drawings along with hundreds of full-color reconstructions of specimens.
The book is divided into sections that put numerous amazing sauropod facts at your fingertips. “Comparing Species” is organized by taxonomic group and gives comparisons of the size of species, how long ago they lived, and when they were discovered. “Mesozoic Calendar” includes page spreads showing the positions of the continents at different geological time periods and reconstructions of creatures from each period. “Prehistoric Puzzles” compares bones and teeth while “Sauropod Life” presents user-friendly graphics to answer questions like what did they eat and which was the most intelligent. There are sections that chart sauropod distribution on the contemporary world map, provide illustrated listings of footprints, compile the physical specifications of all known sauropods, and more.
*The essential illustrated record book for anyone interested in dinosaurs *Features a wealth of comparative records *Includes more than 2,000 diagrams and technical drawings and hundreds of full-color reconstructions *Covers all known sauropodomorph species *Provides listings of footprints, biometric specifications, and scholarly and popular references
Rubén Molina-Pérez is co-founder and scientific director of Eofauna, a company that produces scientifically accurate representations of prehistoric fauna using the most current research available.
This book is essential if you've ever wondered about speed estimates for sauropods or what exactly they were eating, what areas and times they were found in, and if any of them had half a brain (spoiler: some of them were as smart as iguanas, and none of them were as dumb as a zombie) or a significant bite force. My only complaint really has more to do with sauropods themselves, which is that they just aren't quite as diversely shaped as some of their kin so I found myself skimming large sections of the book which are devoted to showing pictures of different species - very lovely pictures, but very alike. I was surprised they didn't try to put in a tiny bit little more variety from the fact some sauropods are known to have spike-like backs and even (small) clubs on their tails, but it was pretty fixated on a theme of smallest and largest for a large chunk of the book so I suppose that limited them.