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52 / Mesozoic
Plateosaurus
Plateosaurus trossingensis
This early long-necked herbivore could rear upright but mainly walked on two legs.
Structured expansion · editorial review pending
- Time range
- About 214–204 million years ago
- Final stage
- Late Triassic
- Geographic range
- Central Europe
01 / ANSWER FIRST
What was Plateosaurus?
This archive records Plateosaurus under the scientific name Plateosaurus trossingensis, with an age of About 214–204 million years ago and a range of Central Europe. This early long-necked herbivore could rear upright but mainly walked on two legs.
Plateosaurus combined grasping hands, a deep torso and a small head. Bonebeds suggest individuals sometimes became trapped in mud.
02 / QUICK FACTS
Plateosaurus at a glance
- Scientific name
- Plateosaurus trossingensis
- Age
- About 214–204 million years ago
- Last recorded stage
- Late Triassic
- Known range
- Central Europe
- Broad group
- dinosaur
- Archive era
- Mesozoic
- Habitat signals
- vegetation, prey communities, floodplains and regional climate
- Documented regions
- Europe
03 / ANATOMY
How was Plateosaurus built?
Overall body plan
This early long-necked herbivore could rear upright but mainly walked on two legs.
Skull, teeth and display structures
The available record is interpreted through preserved proportions, attachment surfaces, wear and comparison with related organisms. For Plateosaurus, those observations must be separated from features added only for visual reconstruction.
Limbs, balance and locomotion
Plateosaurus combined grasping hands, a deep torso and a small head. Bonebeds suggest individuals sometimes became trapped in mud.
Growth and individual variation
A single specimen does not define the whole species. Size, maturity, preservation and possible sex differences are considered before anatomical traits are treated as typical of Plateosaurus.
04 / DIET & BEHAVIOUR
How did Plateosaurus live?
Plateosaurus combined grasping hands, a deep torso and a small head. Bonebeds suggest individuals sometimes became trapped in mud. This ecological reconstruction is strongest where anatomy, associated organisms and the depositional setting point in the same direction.
05 / DIET & BEHAVIOUR
What shaped its ecological limits?
Its populations depended on vegetation, prey communities, floodplains and regional climate. Changes in any one factor did not necessarily cause immediate extinction, but interacting pressures could reduce range, recruitment and resilience.
06 / RANGE & HABITAT
Where and when did Plateosaurus live?
This archive currently lists About 214–204 million years ago; Central Europe. Fossil or historical occurrence data describe where evidence has been found, not every place the taxon once occupied. Species-level age and range limits still require source-specific review.
Documented geographic range
Central Europe. This boundary can change when specimens are reidentified or new localities are published.
Time window
About 214–204 million years ago, with the final recorded stage listed as Late Triassic. Rock units and dating uncertainty mean the true biological range may extend beyond the known record.
Environmental setting
The archive uses the broad habitat labels vegetation, prey communities, floodplains and regional climate. These labels help explore related records; a habitat reconstruction requires evidence from individual localities.
07 / FOSSIL EVIDENCE
What evidence supports reconstructions of Plateosaurus?
Primary record
Numerous skeletons, bone histology and trackways document its growth and posture.
Comparative anatomy
Preserved structures are compared with close and functionally similar organisms. The method can constrain posture and function, but analogy alone cannot prove colour, behaviour or soft tissue.
Age and locality
Stratigraphy and occurrence records place Plateosaurus within About 214–204 million years ago and Central Europe. Reworked fossils and uncertain provenance are treated cautiously.
Open entity records
Links below connect the archive to available taxonomic and occurrence records. A matching name does not verify every ecological claim, and related-taxon links provide comparison rather than an exact species match.
08 / DISAPPEARANCE & DEBATE
Why did Plateosaurus disappear?
The end-Triassic crisis and faunal replacement ended its lineage.
The last fossil or observation marks the youngest evidence currently known, not necessarily the death of the final individual. Explanations are strongest when timing, environmental change and population biology agree; otherwise the profile preserves uncertainty instead of assigning a single dramatic cause.
09 / FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Plateosaurus FAQ
What was Plateosaurus?
This archive records Plateosaurus under the scientific name Plateosaurus trossingensis, with an age of About 214–204 million years ago. This early long-necked herbivore could rear upright but mainly walked on two legs.
When did Plateosaurus live?
The current archive range is About 214–204 million years ago; its youngest recorded stage is Late Triassic.
Where was Plateosaurus found?
The archive currently lists Central Europe. Species-level locality assignments and the full geographic range still require source-specific review.
How do scientists know about Plateosaurus?
Numerous skeletons, bone histology and trackways document its growth and posture.
04 / SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Check the source record
Use the scientific name to compare taxonomy, occurrence records and the fossil record. Database coverage and classifications may differ.
05 / REVISION HISTORY
How has this record changed?
- Completed an AI-assisted bilingual audit of the archive record, corrected identified issues and clarified evidence limits; independent editorial review is pending.
- Expanded into a structured bilingual profile with anatomy, ecology, range, evidence, debate and FAQs; independent editorial review is pending.
- Verified authoritative entity sources and added three responsive reconstruction sizes.
- Initial bilingual species record published.
06 / CORRECTIONS & ADDITIONS