Caulodon Facts
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Height | 4m |
| Length | 15m |
| Weight | 12 tonnes |
| Environment | Land |
| Era | Jurassic |
| Period | Middle Jurassic |
| Type | Sauropod |
| Location | North America |

| Diet | Herbivore |
| Height | 4m |
| Length | 15m |
| Weight | 12 tonnes |
| Environment | Land |
| Era | Jurassic |
| Period | Middle Jurassic |
| Type | Sauropod |
| Location | North America |
Caulodon is a problematic sauropod genus known only from fragmentary tooth remains discovered during the height of the 19th-century 'Bone Wars' between rival palaeontologists. Originally described by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1877, this dinosaur lived during the Middle to Late Jurassic period, approximately 161.5 to 149.2 million years ago, in what is now the western United States.
Based on the limited dental evidence and its classification within Camarasauridae, Caulodon would have been a typical sauropod with the characteristic long neck, small head, massive body, and long tail. Like other members of this family, it likely stood about 4 metres tall at the hip and measured approximately 15 metres in length, weighing around 12 tonnes. The teeth that define this genus suggest it was adapted for stripping vegetation from trees and bushes.
As a herbivorous sauropod, Caulodon would have spent most of its time feeding on conifers, ferns, and cycads that dominated the Jurassic landscape. Its long neck would have allowed it to reach vegetation at various heights without moving its massive body, making feeding more energy-efficient. However, the extremely fragmentary nature of the fossil evidence means that much about this dinosaur remains uncertain.
The validity of Caulodon as a distinct genus has been questioned by modern palaeontologists, as the tooth remains are too incomplete to definitively separate it from other known sauropods of the Morrison Formation, such as Camarasaurus or Diplodocus.
Caulodon is distinguished primarily by its tooth morphology, though the fragmentary nature of the remains makes definitive identification difficult. The teeth appear to have been spatulate and adapted for plant processing, similar to other camarasaurid sauropods.
Like other sauropods, Caulodon likely lived in herds and migrated seasonally in search of food. It would have used its long neck to browse vegetation at different heights, possibly rearing up on its hind legs to reach the tallest trees.
Caulodon was first described by Othniel Charles Marsh in 1877. The original fossils were discovered at Morrison Formation, Colorado, USA.