How tall is a vulcanodon

While Vulcanodon already was fully quadrupedal four-legged , its limb proportions were intermediate between those of its prosauropod ancestors and those of later, more derived sauropods. Its forelimbs were much more similar to later sauropods than basal sauropodomorphs because they are straight, much more gracile, and the proximal end of the ulna is v-shaped.

Unfortunately, no skull or neck of Vulcanodon is known, although it is otherwise very well-known. Its lower leg, metatarsus, and toes were shortened in comparison to its bipedal ancestors, but still not as short as in later sauropods. The sacrum was made out of four fused sacral vertebrae; "prosauropods" possessed only three sacrals. The tail vertebra bodies already showed an incipient excavation of their lateral sides, saving weight and giving them a waisted appearance when viewed from below.

In later sauropods, this excavations were enlarged to form extensive pockets called pleurocoels. Contrasting the many sauropod-like features of the skeleton, the pelvis was relatively primitive, reminiscent of its "prosauropod" ancestors. One such feature is that the brevis shelf of the ilium has a fossa, which is not found in any more derived sauropods.

The hallux the first toe of the foot showed a large claw that was flattened laterally, as seen in "prosauropods". However, the claws of the second and third toe were unusual in being nail-like and broader than deep. This feature was also found in the probably closely related Tazoudasaurus , but is absent in all other sauropods.

The feet of Vulcanodon were semiplantigrade as in later sauropods where both the digits and part of the metatarsals contact the ground , a derived feature not found in more basal sauropods like Isanosaurus. However, they also retained primitive features, like the fact that the phalanges were not reduced. Many of the features found in sauropods that basal sauropodomorphs lack are related to the change in body size. The greatest regions affected by this are the hind limbs and pelvis.

For example, an elongating of the ilium, size reduction of the lesser trochanter shelf, and semiplantigrade posture are some features that indicate the amount and positioning of leg muscles being modified. Vulcanodon possessed these features, the latter of which is seen earliest in it.

However, Vulcanodon does not have reduced distal phalanges, which are seen in Shunosaurus and all more derived sauropods. This means that while the muscle positioning of its legs were changing, they had not yet reduced in the distal region of the limb. Originally, Michael Raath described Vulcanodon not as a sauropod but as an advanced, specialized prosauropod, possibly of the family Melanorosauridae.

According to Raath, the sauropod-like limb proportions have been independently evolved in Vulcanodon and sauropods convergent evolution. He argued that primitive features of the pelvis as well as the knife-shaped teeth preclude a classification within the Sauropoda. The teeth, however, are now known to belong to a theropod.

Arthur Cruickshank was the first to show that Vulcanodon was indeed a sauropod, arguing that the fifth metatarsal bone was equally long as the remaining metatarsals, a condition seen in other sauropods but not in prosauropods. Today, Vulcanodon is universally accepted to be one of the most basal primitive members of Sauropoda.

Michael Cooper erected a new family, the Vulcanodontidae, which he regarded as the "rootstock" for later sauropod families. Originally, the Vulcanodontidae included Vulcanodon and the Indian Barapasaurus , but subsequent studies attributed a number of other, much more fragmentary early sauropod genera to this family, including Ohmdenosaurus and Zizhongosaurus.

Paul Upchurch showed that Barapasaurus was more closely related to later, more advanced sauropods than to Vulcanodon , rendering the Vulcanodontidae polyphyletic and therefore invalid. The exact relationships with other basal sauropod genera remain unclear.

Ronan Allain and colleagues , found that Vulcanodon is most closely related to Tazoudasaurus , a newly discovered sauropod genus from Morocco. These researchers suggested reintroducing the name Vulcanodontidae to name the clade containing Vulcanodon and Tazoudasaurus.

However, this sibling relationship between Tazoudasaurus and Vulcanodon could not be confirmed by other analyses. Adam Yates described a single sauropod tail vertebra from the Upper Elliot Formation of South Africa that may belong to a genus closely related to Vulcanodon.

The Upper Elliot Formation is famous for its abundant fossils of the prosauropod Massospondylus. Vulcanodon is known only from a single locality on an island in Lake Kariba, the largest artificial lake in the world, in northern Zimbabwe formerly Rhodesia. The first bone was found by B. Gibson of the town of Kariba in July , and an excavation team collected the specimen in October , March and May In the later half of , the new find was presented at a scientific symposium in Cape Town and a brief note was published.

The find was formally described in July by palaeontologist Michael Raath. It was one of the first dinosaurs found in Zimbabwe. The skeleton catalogue number QG24 has been found weathering out of a hill slope and was partially eroded by surface exponation and plant roots. It includes the pelvis and sacrum, most of the left hind limb and foot, a right thigh bone, and 12 anterior tail vertebrae.

These remains pertain to a single individual as they were all found articulated still connected together. Additionally, several disarticulated bones were found, including the right forearm and some metacarpalia and phalanges from both the right and left forefeet, probably also pertaining to this individual. Later, the site was revisited by the scientists G. Size: Holotype individual dimensions include following; Fore leg - humerus 70 centimetres, radius Hind leg - Femur centimetres, tibia Total length of preserved portion of the skeleton estimated at 6.

Total size uncertain until neck vertebrae are found, but certainly longer than 6. Vulcanodon is often quoted as being six and a half meters long, but this is actually the estimated length of the preserved portion of the skeleton which does not include the neck or skull. How long Vulcanodon was specifically would depend upon the length of the neck, which until further fossils are found, can only really be guessed at.