Sauropodomorpha

Mbiresaurus raathi

Mbiresaurus raathi skeletal reconstruction, left lateral view, reconstructed length 80 cm.
Scale bar = 20 centimeters
Taxon
Mbiresaurus raathi Griffin et al., 2022
Reconstructed length
~1.7 m (5.5 feet)
View
Left lateral
Drawing
© Scott Hartman
Drawn
2021, revised 2026
Clade
  1. Sauropodomorpha

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Mbiresaurus is one of the oldest known sauropodomorphs, having lived during the Late Triassic of Zimbabwe. It’s also one of the smallest sauropodomorphs, growing to about 1.7 meters (~5.5 feet) long, and probably weighing about as much as a small dog. But from small beginnings, sometimes big things emerge!

The evidence

What the specimen actually preserves

Known skeletal material of Mbiresaurus raathi — elements preserved in the specimen drawn in white against a black body silhouette.
Known material: elements preserved in the specimen are shown in white; unpreserved regions are left as black silhouette. Drawn 2021, revised 2026

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