Camelotia

Camelotia was a very large basal sauropodomorph that inhabited southern England during the Rhaetian stage at the close of the Triassic Period. Found within bone-bed deposits of the Westbury Formation in Somerset, it is known from scattered remains including vertebrae, limb bones, and pelvic material. With an estimated length approaching nine to ten metres and a weight of up to three tonnes, Camelotia was one of the largest land animals in Europe right before the Triassic-Jurassic mass extinction. Though long placed among the traditional prosauropods, recent phylogenetic analyses suggest it occupies a position closer to true sauropods within Sauropodiformes. Its substantial size reflects an evolutionary trend towards large body mass prior to the dawn of the Jurassic.

It was discovered near the mythical Arthurian site of Camelot in Somerset.

Where and when

Camelotia lived in the Late Triassic, from 205.6 to 201.4 million years ago (Rhaetian age). Its remains come from United Kingdom, in the Westbury Formation.

The numbers

Length 9 m (estimates run from 8 to 10 m). Mass about 2.6 t. Hip height about 2.5 m. That is 5.3 human-lengths, or 0.8 of a double-decker bus. These are estimates from fragmentary remains; fields marked estimated by the site are length, mass, hip height.

Compare Camelotia with a bus Place on the timeline