MAMENCHISAURUS

Mamenchisaurus constructus

Etymology: Construction horse-gate brook lizard

Nickname: "Mamenchi"

Classification: Sauropoda, Mamenchisauridae

Diet: Herbivore

Size: 24 meters long

Provenance: Shaximiao Formation, China - Late Jurassic, Oxfordian - Tithonian stages, 161 - 143 million years ago

Movie appearances: The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

Mamenchisaurus constructus was a mamenchisaurid sauropod, infamous for its immensely long neck, even among sauropods. It is part of the mamenchisaurids, a group of sauropods largely most abundant and diverse in the asian continent. Its immense height was an adaptation to feed on leaves far above the ground.

Mamenchisaurus has been shown to coexist fairly with a number of plant-eating dinosaurs, such as Parasaurolophus, Pachycephalosaurus wyomingensis, Gallimimus, Triceratops and Stegosaurus.

Mamenchisaurus were bred in Isla Sorna, until, in 1993, Hurricane Clarissa led these dinosaurs to roam in the wild; this sauropod was encountered by poachers, in 1997, where their immense almost mature size was observed, with a whole person being able to ride a bike just below its belly.

FILM vs. REALITY

The Mamenchisaurus depicted in the films differs sufficiently from its real life counterpart. The one depicted in the film has a physique that is largely similar to that of diplodocid dinosaurs, with a long neck and long whip-like tail as well as an elongated and narrow skull. The real life Mamenchisaurus did have a really long neck, but its tail was shorter, its legs were stouter and smaller, and its skull was tall but short. The depiction of the film also shows very elephantine-like limbs, with robust columnar feet, with simple nail-like claws, while the real life Mamenchisaurus would have had simple clawless forelimbs, with the exception of a possible thumb claw, and robust back feet with large curved claws.

The film's Mamenchisaurus is depicted living with other members of its species. There is fossil evidence for gregarious behavior in sauropods, so this detail is likely accurate.