Sauropodomorphs 1: (“lizard-feet forms”) were herbivorous, usually quadrupedal (four-footed)
dinosaurs. A suborder of the Saurischia, they were characterized by small heads, bulky bodies, and
long necks and tails. Sauropodomorphs have often been split into two groups: prosauropods and
sauropods. Prosauropods lived from Late Triassic to Early Jurassic times (225–180 million years ago) and included beasts such as the small Anchisaurus and one of the first very large dinosaurs, Plateosaurus. By Middle Jurassic times (about 165 million years ago), sauropods had replaced prosauropods and spread worldwide. They included the heaviest and longest land animals ever, such as Diplodocus and Brachiosaurus. Sauropods persisted to the end of the Cretaceous period (65 million years ago). Many of these dinosaurs moved in herds, protected from predatory theropods by their huge bulk and powerful tails, which they could use to lash out at attackers. Sauropodomorphs
were the most common large herbivores until Late Jurassic times (about 145 million years ago), and appear to have survived in both southern and northern continents until the end of the Cretaceous period.
