Camarasaurus Facts for Kids
KAM-uh-ruh-SORE-us · its name means “chambered lizard”
A long-necked giant with a short, boxy head and spoon-shaped teeth.
Camarasaurus was a giant plant-eater. It had a long neck and a short, boxy head. Its teeth were shaped like spoons.
Camarasaurus walked on four strong legs. Its neck was shorter than many of its cousins' necks, and its head was blunt and chunky. Its strong, spoon-shaped teeth were good for tough plants. Its name means chambered lizard, because hollow spaces in its back bones made them light but strong.
Camarasaurus is one of the most common long-necked dinosaurs found in the Jurassic rocks of western North America. Skeletons of young ones have been found as well as grown-ups. Its short, deep skull and big, strong teeth were probably made for tougher food than the slim-headed Diplodocus ate. It lived beside Stegosaurus, Allosaurus and Brontosaurus.
Every dinosaur number is scientists’ best guess from bones, so each one says where it came from.
How big was Camarasaurus?
Camarasaurus in numbers
| Length (nose to tail) | 50 ft15 m1maximum |
|---|---|
| Height at the hips | no checked number yet |
| Weight | 20 tons18 tonnes1average adult Camarasaurus lentus |
| When it lived | 150 million years ago150 million years ago1scientists' estimate |
| What it ate | leaves from trees, and ferns |
| Fossils found in | western North America, including Utah, Colorado and Wyoming |
| What kind | a sauropod: a giant long-necked plant-eater |
Wow!
- Hollow spaces in its back bones kept them light but strong.
- Its teeth were shaped like spoons.
- Skeletons of young Camarasaurus have been found, too.
🦴 Camarasaurus’s bones
Books about Camarasaurus, free at the library
Ask a grown-up to tap the button: it shows where to borrow a book about Camarasaurus for free.
Where was the land back then?
The continents were in different places when Camarasaurus lived, 150 million years ago. Open Planet Earth, pick Drifting continents, and slide back in time to see where the land was.
Its neighbours in time
Where these numbers come from
- National Park Service, Dinosaur National Monument, checked 30 October 2026.
- Wikidata, Camarasaurus (Q14419), checked 30 October 2026.
To read more: the Natural History Museum’s Dino Directory (see also, not copied).