How the Titanosaur Lived: The Biggest Dinosaur to Ever Walk on Earth

The long-necked, lumbering titanosaur was once found on every continent in the world during the Cretaceous period. Here's what we know about the biggest dinosaur to walk on land.

By Joshua Rapp Learn
Aug 8, 2023 1:00 PM
Titanosaur, the biggest dinosaur to walk on land
Titanosaurs like Argentinosaurus roamed the world around 66 million to 145 million years ago. (Credit: David Roland/Shutterstock)

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Titanosaurs, a diverse group of long-necked sauropod dinosaurs, were found on every continent, including Antarctica, in their Cretaceous heyday.

They lived right up until the end of all other non-bird dinosaurs, when the Chicxulub asteroid struck the Yucatan Peninsula about 66 million years ago.

Paleontologists have discovered dozens of distinct titanosaurs, many of them relatively recently in fossil beds in South America. Nearly all of the group are massive, but like other sauropods, these giants mostly fed on vegetation.

“They could even eat very small plants,” says Julian Silva Jr., a paleontologist with the University of Sao Paolo’s Ribeirao Preto campus.

The Discovery of the Biggest Dinosaur to Walk on Land

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