The Mouse Lizard

Reaching an estimated 3 m (10 ft) in length and 70 kg (150 lbs) in weight, the early sauropodomorph Mussaurus patagonicus was an aptly named dinosaur. The name means "Mouse Lizard" and was applied originally to the skeletons of infants, which are considerably smaller at 20 to 37 centimeters (7.9 to 14.6 in) long, because these were the only specimens known for a fairly long time. Some of the first adult specimens were found alongside or within nests of the already known juvenile and infant dinosaurs. Eggs of this species have also been found in some of these nests. The original juvenile specimens were described in 1979 and the first adult specimens were not described until 2013. The first adult specimens in this description were actually reassigned from Plateosaurus specimens that were described mistakenly in 1980. Their similarities make sense because both were early dinosaurs and both were early sauropodomorphs.

©Henrique Paes