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Description

Brachiosaurus altithorax

Sauropods are among the most iconic of all dinosaurs. Their distinctive long necks, massive torsos, and long tails. The Late Jurassic Morrison Formation was a hotspot for these animals with many iconic sauropods being unearthed, from the legendary Brontosaurus to the enigmatic Maraapunisaurus. However, no animal is more recognizable than the massive Brachiosaurus altithorax.

History:

In 1900, Elmer Riggs of the Field Museum of Chicago was excavating in a valley near Fruita, Colorado. Unearthed from rocks now dated to around ~153-154,000,000 years old. The holotype consisted of back (dorsal) vertebra, a pair of ribs, a sacrum, the right ilium (hip bone), two tail vertebrae, a right femur, and right humerus. This find was dubbed the holotype, and one of Riggs’ assistants, Harold William Menke described it as “the biggest thing yet!”. And indeed, it was massive. Riggs named the creature in its initial description in 1903, calling it, Brachiosaurus altithorax. Its genus name derives from the Greek brachion meaning “arm”, sauros obviously meaning “lizard”, and the species name means “deep-chest”, so deep-chested arm lizard.
However, some think the first specimen of Brachiosaurus may have been described some 17 years prior.
In 1883, during the height of the bone wars, Othniel Marsh was informed by a farmer named Marshall Parker Felch, a fossil collector that he unearthed a partial skull of a sauropod along with a vertebral fragment which was destroyed during its excavation. Marsh assigned the skull to Brontosaurus (because of the outdated notion of how Brontosaurus had a Camarasaurid skull). For years, the skull was put away in the National Museum of Natural History in DC classified as USNM 5730.
In 1975, Paleontologists Jack McIntosh and David Berman found that this skull did belong to Brachiosaurus. Further studies in 1998, clarified this when paleontologists Ken Carpenter and Virginia Tidwell also came to this conclusion, assigning it to an unknown species of Brachiosaurus (its now believed to belong to Brachiosaurus altithorax itself).

Skull shape?:

The skull itself, while it resembles Camarasaurus, is more of a halfway between Camarasaurus and another Brachiosaurid known as Giraffatitan brancai, another dinosaur that for a while was believed to be a species of Brachiosaurus.

Giraffe Vs. Brach:

In 2009, a study published by Dr. Mike Taylor had found that the two genera, Brachiosaurus altithorax and the African Brachiosaurus “Giraffatitan” brancai were a lot more different than previously realized. While these two features had similar niches, Brachiosaurus brancai was another, distinctive genus of Brachiosaur. Thus, it was proposed that it be separated in its own genus, creating Giraffatitan brancai.

So, what were the differences between these two magnificent sauropods?

-Brachiosaurus had a longer, deeper torso. It’s believed that this made it more front-heavy than Giraffatitan.
-The skull (Felch Quarry in this case) was shorter and thinner than Giraffatitan. The nares on Giraffatitan were also narrower on the top compared to Brachiosaurus.
-The shoulders were wider, making its arms look more sprawled compared to Giraffatitan.
-The tail on Brachiosaurus was longer by ~a quarter of length than Giraffatitan.

However, it should be noted, that the necks of the two species were roughly the same length.

Description and Size:

The size of this giant sauropod is up to debate. As there have only been partial remains, and no complete adult specimens found. However, the commonly accepted figure is around 75-85ft long from tip to tail. At the top of the head if it held its neck fully upright would have been around 35-42ft tall. Weight has been estimated to be around 30-62 tons.

Head Morphology:

The head of this dinosaur, along with other Brachiosaurs is characterized for its raised nares (the bony nostril areas). A common trope in paleoart was to have this dinosaurs’ nostrils held high on its head dead-center in the nares. Partially because it was thought that this Dinosaur was semi or fully aquatic as the common thought in the early days of paleontology would have made this animal unable to walk on land. Even after the Dinosaur Renaissance and the emerging view that these were still active and more bird-like creatures, the nostrils were kept atop the head. However, a study published in 2001, found evidence known as osteological correlates running nostrils running from the bony nares all the way near the apex snout. Which makes sense considering that in most modern archosaurs have external nostrils placed far forward on the snout.

Habitat:

The habitat of Brachiosaurus would have been a scrubby savannah-like environment populated not with grass, but horsetail and ferns. It had a wet and dry season where every season would see the savannah transform into lush floodplains. Furthermore, there were vast conifer forests, and it was these trees that enabled these dinosaurs to thrive.

Behavior:

It was the characteristic giraffe-like neck is that enabled Brachiosaurus to inhabit different niches in the Jurassic compared to their contemporary sauropods. This is known as niche partitioning. While other sauropods had necks that were (probably) less elevated, this animal could feed on vegetation from much higher areas, most likely, these dinosaurs were high-browsing herbivores. Browsing the tops of the conifer trees on the plains and forests across the Morrison Formation. The teeth of Brachiosaurs back this up. Studies suggest this dinosaurs’ teeth were designed for selective nipping of branches and clusters of leaves. Whereas their distant cousins, the Diplodocids were designed to strip ferns and softer vegetation. It’s believed that the trees they would have fed upon would have resembled modern-day sequoia trees. In fact, tall coniferous trees are relatively rare in the Morrison, which lends credence to the niche partitioning in play with these high-browsing sauropods.

Pop Culture:

Of course, one of the most iconic scenes in cinema was the appearance of Brachiosaurus in the 1993 film, Jurassic Park. That awe-inspiring creature to millions across the globe. It was an introduction to Jurassic Park and to the new, active and dynamic depiction of Sauropods across the globe.
However, one of the most memorable parts of that scene has now become somewhat outdated. During the end of the iconic scene, we see the Brachiosaurus rear up on her hind legs to get some extra plants atop the trees. For some sauropods, like Diplodocids, they would have been ideal for rearing back on their hindlimbs, given their long tail and center of mass near the hindlimbs. In Brachiosaurus, most of its mass was concentrated near its forelimbs. This would lead to problems of it being able to support itself on its hindlimbs. Furthermore, its long neck gave it a huge edge to enable it to browse from trees. With some sauropods, they would have doubled their feeding height, whereas Brachiosaurus would have only gained around 33% of its height. It. Regardless, no one will deny that the scene made a massive impression on moviegoers around the world.

Brachiosaurus and its kin remain icons of the Jurassic Period. Its history, its long giraffe-like neck, its unique high-browsing niche, and of course its appearance in Jurassic Park helped immortalize it in minds of kids and paleo-enthusiasts for all time.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Decided to come back to paleoart after both working on Past Meets Present and reading some interesting books. This is a dinosaur I put a lot of time into. In retrospect, maybe I should have included this in episode 2, but, ultimately I just settled on Diplodocus and Brontosaurus. Still, this is one of the most iconic dinosaurs and one of my favorites. Having grown up with Jurassic Park and going to the Field Museum constantly.

References were mainly Paleo-King 's skeletal diagrams.
Brachiosaur comparison
I also tried to find other diagrams that portrayed Brachiosaurus' more sprawled forelimbs.

Base model was by HENDRIX's Argentinosaurus, but extensively modified. I added spines on the top of the neck near the head. Taking inspiration from both Teratophoneus and TrefRex in fact the pose is largely based on the latter, just from an altered perspective.
Brachiosaurus altithorax
Walking with Dinosaurs: Brachiosaurus
Now, the color scheme, yeah, it looks like an acid trip vomited all over the back of the Brachiosaurus. I started out taking inspiration from SameerPrehistorica 's Brachiosaurus before realizing: yeah, I like the color red, but just plain red looks really bland on Brachiosaurus. That's when I looked through All Yesterdays and sort of took some inspiration from more... extravagant paleoart. So I added the distinctive leopard-like spots with green, and orange being the primary colors.

Now while this isn't going to be in Past Meets Present, I am going to this as a basis for my remodel of Sauroposeidon. Mainly because my old model's head was really inaccurate.

Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this and maybe learned something. I have another profile coming up that'll be a bit different from my usual paleontological profile. I may have another paleo-profile, but IDK. The model is done, but I need to better structure the text in how I present it.

Original model by DinosaurManZT2 modified by me:
Argentinosaurus (HENDRIX) | ZT2 Download Library Wiki | Fandom

Description

Brachiosaurus altithorax

Sauropods are among the most iconic of all dinosaurs. Their distinctive long necks, massive torsos, and long tails. The Late Jurassic Morrison Formation was a hotspot for these animals with many iconic sauropods being unearthed, from the legendary Brontosaurus to the enigmatic Maraapunisaurus. However, no animal is more recognizable than the massive Brachiosaurus altithorax.

History:

In 1900, Elmer Riggs of the Field Museum of Chicago was excavating in a valley near Fruita, Colorado. Unearthed from rocks now dated to around ~153-154,000,000 years old. The holotype consisted of back (dorsal) vertebra, a pair of ribs, a sacrum, the right ilium (hip bone), two tail vertebrae, a right femur, and right humerus. This find was dubbed the holotype, and one of Riggs’ assistants, Harold William Menke described it as “the biggest thing yet!”. And indeed, it was massive. Riggs named the creature in its initial description in 1903, calling it, Brachiosaurus altithorax. Its genus name derives from the Greek brachion meaning “arm”, sauros obviously meaning “lizard”, and the species name means “deep-chest”, so deep-chested arm lizard.
However, some think the first specimen of Brachiosaurus may have been described some 17 years prior.
In 1883, during the height of the bone wars, Othniel Marsh was informed by a farmer named Marshall Parker Felch, a fossil collector that he unearthed a partial skull of a sauropod along with a vertebral fragment which was destroyed during its excavation. Marsh assigned the skull to Brontosaurus (because of the outdated notion of how Brontosaurus had a Camarasaurid skull). For years, the skull was put away in the National Museum of Natural History in DC classified as USNM 5730.
In 1975, Paleontologists Jack McIntosh and David Berman found that this skull did belong to Brachiosaurus. Further studies in 1998, clarified this when paleontologists Ken Carpenter and Virginia Tidwell also came to this conclusion, assigning it to an unknown species of Brachiosaurus (its now believed to belong to Brachiosaurus altithorax itself).

Skull shape?:

The skull itself, while it resembles Camarasaurus, is more of a halfway between Camarasaurus and another Brachiosaurid known as Giraffatitan brancai, another dinosaur that for a while was believed to be a species of Brachiosaurus.

Giraffe Vs. Brach:

In 2009, a study published by Dr. Mike Taylor had found that the two genera, Brachiosaurus altithorax and the African Brachiosaurus “Giraffatitan” brancai were a lot more different than previously realized. While these two features had similar niches, Brachiosaurus brancai was another, distinctive genus of Brachiosaur. Thus, it was proposed that it be separated in its own genus, creating Giraffatitan brancai.

So, what were the differences between these two magnificent sauropods?

-Brachiosaurus had a longer, deeper torso. It’s believed that this made it more front-heavy than Giraffatitan.
-The skull (Felch Quarry in this case) was shorter and thinner than Giraffatitan. The nares on Giraffatitan were also narrower on the top compared to Brachiosaurus.
-The shoulders were wider, making its arms look more sprawled compared to Giraffatitan.
-The tail on Brachiosaurus was longer by ~a quarter of length than Giraffatitan.

However, it should be noted, that the necks of the two species were roughly the same length.

Description and Size:

The size of this giant sauropod is up to debate. As there have only been partial remains, and no complete adult specimens found. However, the commonly accepted figure is around 75-85ft long from tip to tail. At the top of the head if it held its neck fully upright would have been around 35-42ft tall. Weight has been estimated to be around 30-62 tons.

Head Morphology:

The head of this dinosaur, along with other Brachiosaurs is characterized for its raised nares (the bony nostril areas). A common trope in paleoart was to have this dinosaurs’ nostrils held high on its head dead-center in the nares. Partially because it was thought that this Dinosaur was semi or fully aquatic as the common thought in the early days of paleontology would have made this animal unable to walk on land. Even after the Dinosaur Renaissance and the emerging view that these were still active and more bird-like creatures, the nostrils were kept atop the head. However, a study published in 2001, found evidence known as osteological correlates running nostrils running from the bony nares all the way near the apex snout. Which makes sense considering that in most modern archosaurs have external nostrils placed far forward on the snout.

Habitat:

The habitat of Brachiosaurus would have been a scrubby savannah-like environment populated not with grass, but horsetail and ferns. It had a wet and dry season where every season would see the savannah transform into lush floodplains. Furthermore, there were vast conifer forests, and it was these trees that enabled these dinosaurs to thrive.

Behavior:

It was the characteristic giraffe-like neck is that enabled Brachiosaurus to inhabit different niches in the Jurassic compared to their contemporary sauropods. This is known as niche partitioning. While other sauropods had necks that were (probably) less elevated, this animal could feed on vegetation from much higher areas, most likely, these dinosaurs were high-browsing herbivores. Browsing the tops of the conifer trees on the plains and forests across the Morrison Formation. The teeth of Brachiosaurs back this up. Studies suggest this dinosaurs’ teeth were designed for selective nipping of branches and clusters of leaves. Whereas their distant cousins, the Diplodocids were designed to strip ferns and softer vegetation. It’s believed that the trees they would have fed upon would have resembled modern-day sequoia trees. In fact, tall coniferous trees are relatively rare in the Morrison, which lends credence to the niche partitioning in play with these high-browsing sauropods.

Pop Culture:

Of course, one of the most iconic scenes in cinema was the appearance of Brachiosaurus in the 1993 film, Jurassic Park. That awe-inspiring creature to millions across the globe. It was an introduction to Jurassic Park and to the new, active and dynamic depiction of Sauropods across the globe.
However, one of the most memorable parts of that scene has now become somewhat outdated. During the end of the iconic scene, we see the Brachiosaurus rear up on her hind legs to get some extra plants atop the trees. For some sauropods, like Diplodocids, they would have been ideal for rearing back on their hindlimbs, given their long tail and center of mass near the hindlimbs. In Brachiosaurus, most of its mass was concentrated near its forelimbs. This would lead to problems of it being able to support itself on its hindlimbs. Furthermore, its long neck gave it a huge edge to enable it to browse from trees. With some sauropods, they would have doubled their feeding height, whereas Brachiosaurus would have only gained around 33% of its height. It. Regardless, no one will deny that the scene made a massive impression on moviegoers around the world.

Brachiosaurus and its kin remain icons of the Jurassic Period. Its history, its long giraffe-like neck, its unique high-browsing niche, and of course its appearance in Jurassic Park helped immortalize it in minds of kids and paleo-enthusiasts for all time.
___________________________________________________________________________________________
Decided to come back to paleoart after both working on Past Meets Present and reading some interesting books. This is a dinosaur I put a lot of time into. In retrospect, maybe I should have included this in episode 2, but, ultimately I just settled on Diplodocus and Brontosaurus. Still, this is one of the most iconic dinosaurs and one of my favorites. Having grown up with Jurassic Park and going to the Field Museum constantly.

References were mainly Paleo-King 's skeletal diagrams.
Brachiosaur comparison
I also tried to find other diagrams that portrayed Brachiosaurus' more sprawled forelimbs.

Base model was by HENDRIX's Argentinosaurus, but extensively modified. I added spines on the top of the neck near the head. Taking inspiration from both Teratophoneus and TrefRex in fact the pose is largely based on the latter, just from an altered perspective.
Brachiosaurus altithorax
Walking with Dinosaurs: Brachiosaurus
Now, the color scheme, yeah, it looks like an acid trip vomited all over the back of the Brachiosaurus. I started out taking inspiration from SameerPrehistorica 's Brachiosaurus before realizing: yeah, I like the color red, but just plain red looks really bland on Brachiosaurus. That's when I looked through All Yesterdays and sort of took some inspiration from more... extravagant paleoart. So I added the distinctive leopard-like spots with green, and orange being the primary colors.

Now while this isn't going to be in Past Meets Present, I am going to this as a basis for my remodel of Sauroposeidon. Mainly because my old model's head was really inaccurate.

Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed this and maybe learned something. I have another profile coming up that'll be a bit different from my usual paleontological profile. I may have another paleo-profile, but IDK. The model is done, but I need to better structure the text in how I present it.

Original model by DinosaurManZT2 modified by me:
Argentinosaurus (HENDRIX) | ZT2 Download Library Wiki | Fandom