University of Queensland researcher and project team leader Dr Steve Salisbury said today that the fossil locality was the first dinosaur site in Australia in which the remains of two sauropods had been found together.
Some of the better-known sauropods include Diplodocus, Brachiosaurus and Apatosaurus (previously known as ‘Brontosaurus’). They typically had extremely long necks and tails, proportionately small heads, and four elephantine legs that, on even the smallest ones, were as thick as tree trunks. Sauropods were gigantic plant-eating dinosaurs. Professor Gardner said it was a spectacular example of scientific expertise and community partnership leading to a research outcome of international significance. “This is another great coup for the project ream, which reaffirms the importance of Queensland as the home of Australia’s largest and most important dinosaur finds,” Mr Foley said. Minister for the Arts Matt Foley and University of Queensland Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic) Professor Margaret Gardner congratulated the research team on the discovery. In his last hours, 98-95 million years ago, Elliot had a companion, a second sauropod whom Australian scientists have named “Mary”.Ī combined University of Queensland and Queensland Museum team today announced the finding following thorough examination of the fossil evidence from a dig near Winton, central-western Queensland, earlier this year. The largest dinosaur discovered to date in Australia, Elliot the sauropod, did not die alone.