Camarasaurus: The Chambered Lizard

June 02, 2026

Camarasaurus is a big plant-eating dinosaur from the late Jurassic period, about 155 million to 145 million years ago.

What did it look like?

• It had four strong legs, a long neck, and a long tail.
• Its length might be 55-60 feet, height 16-24 feet and weight up to 22 tons.
• Its body was big and round, and its teeth were peg-like for eating plants.
• The name means “chambered lizard.”

How did it live?

• It ate leaves and twigs. Its long neck helped reach high and low plants.
• It walked slowly on sturdy legs and sometimes lived in groups.

Fun facts

• It was one of the first big sauropods named by scientists.
• Its bones had big spaces to stay light while it grew very large.

The Camarasaurus is really helpful for scientists to figure out what life was like a time ago. When scientists look at the Camarasaurus bones they can see how the Camarasaurus dinosaurs grew and how they moved around. This also helps scientists learn what the world was like a long time ago which gives us a better idea of what the Earth was like in the old days and that tells us more, about the Earths ancient history and the Camarasaurus that lived in it.