Dinosaur genus
Diplodocus
Diplodocus is a dinosaur genus known from bones, found in rocks 154.8–143.1 million years old, in the United States and the United Kingdom.
medium
medium: Only Wikidata gives this; nothing contradicts it.Confidence labels are switched off. Facts with low confidence, or where sources disagree, still carry a small dot: tap it for the reason.
At a glance
Data as of 5 October 2026- Named by
- Marsh 1878
high
high: PBDB and Wikidata agree.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Described in
- O. C. Marsh (1878). Principal characters of American Jurassic dinosaurs. Part I. American Journal of Science and Arts 16: 411–416. Read it
high
high: PBDB gives this publication for the name; its author and year match the naming authority (Marsh 1878), on which PBDB and Wikidata agree.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. The publication the Paleobiology Database gives as the authority for this genus name, usually the one that first named and described it.
- Type species
- Diplodocus longus
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Lived
- 157.9–143.1 million years ago
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives a range this precise; NHM's records give only a broader interval, which contains it.Omnisaura calculation154.8–143.1 million years ago, from its dated fossil recordsmedium
medium: Omnisaura's calculation from 62 confirmed PBDB records.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Fossils found in
- United StatesUnited Kingdom
high
high: NHM and PBDB both record it.disputed
low: NHM records it here but PBDB has no record in this country; awaiting an editor.mixed
mixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database; Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: Union of all sources (ISO 3166).
- Rock formations
- Morrison Formation
high
high: NHM and PBDB both record it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database; Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: Canonical names, automatic and editor-approved matches applied.
- Family
- Diplodocidae
high
high: PBDB and NHM agree.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database; Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Parent group
- Diplodocinae
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Order
- Saurischia
medium
medium: Only NHM gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Natural History Museum Data Portal. How it was chosen: Gap filled from NHM.
- Species named in its records
- Diplodocus carnegiei, Diplodocus carnegii, Diplodocus hallorum, Diplodocus longus
Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database (the species its fossil records are identified as).
- Older or other names
- Seismosaurus (a junior synonym)
Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database (names it treats as this genus).
- Diet
- herbivore (inferred for its group)
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this, and it infers it for the whole of Sauropoda, the group this genus belongs to, not from this genus's own fossils.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB, inferred from a group the genus belongs to.
- Way of life
- ground dwelling, gregarious (inferred for its group)
low
low: PBDB infers this way of life for the whole of Sauropoda; behaviour is rarely known for one genus.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB, inferred from a group the genus belongs to.
- Known from
- Bones
Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database (what the name was based on).
Gaps are answers
What isn't known yet
- What it was named after: no source we use gives it yet.
- Held back: 4 fossil records left out: identified only tentatively (for example "cf.", "?" or the name in quotation marks).
- Resting on one source: 6 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): type species (PBDB); parent group (PBDB); order (NHM); age (headline) (PBDB); common names (Wikidata); diet (PBDB).
Size and appearance aren't covered yet, and diet and way of life only as PBDB infers them for the wider group. Omnisaura leaves the rest out rather than guess.
Where sources disagree
1 openCountries
- USPBDB
- United KingdomNHM
One source records a country the other does not. An editor hasn't ruled yet, so this is rated low until they do.
Did it meet…?
No. Diplodocus had gone at least 59.5 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record.
Going by the ages and rock formations of their dated fossils, as on the map. Compare their fossil sites on the map.
Connections
Genera linked to Diplodocus by where and when their fossils were found, by classification and by who named them. Select a name to open its page.
Same rocks, same time 34
Genera found in the same rock units, from rocks of overlapping age, the most shared fossil sites first.
Same family: Diplodocidae 7
Other genera in Diplodocidae with a full profile.
Named by Marsh 18
Genera whose naming authority includes the same surname. The authority has no initials, so different people who share a surname can appear together.
Found in United States 38
Other genera found in United States, from rocks of overlapping age, the most fossil sites there first.
Credits
Where this page comes from
- Paleobiology DatabaseCC BY 4.0 · fossil records, ages, classification
- Natural History Museum Data PortalCC0 1.0 · catalogued specimens
- WikidataCC0 1.0 · names and identifiers
- OmnisauraOmnisaura editorial · confidence levels and gaps
- PaleoMAP PaleoCoastlines (Kocsis and Scotese 2021)CC BY 4.0 · ancient coastlines on the small map
- Natural EarthPublic domain · today's coastlines
Pictures linked from this page are credited beside each one, with their own licences; the full list is in the JSON download.