Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin (ISSN 0178 – 6288) . Number 120, December 2014, pp. 1-29. | Page 16

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The skeleton of the Long-necked Whip-tailed Sauropod Dinosaur (Amphicoelias
brontodiplodocus Galiano and Albersdörfer, 2010) at Dubai Mall, Dubai, UAE.
Photo by Prof. Dr. Sc. Norman Ali Bassam Khalaf-von Jaffa. 12.03.2014.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/50022881@N00/13963351962/
Throughout their evolutionary history, sauropod dinosaurs were found
primarily in semi-arid, seasonally dry environments, with a corresponding
seasonal drop in the quality of food during the dry season. The environment of
Amphicoelias was essentially a savanna, similar to the arid environments in which
modern giant herbivores are found, supporting the idea that poor-quality food in
an arid environment promotes the evolution of giant herbivores. Carpenter
argued that other benefits of large size, such as relative immunity from
predators, lower energy expenditure, and longer life span, are probably
secondary advantages (Wikipedia).
The Morrison Formation environment in which Amphicoelias lived would have
resembled a modern savanna, though since grass did not appear until the Late
Cretaceous, ferns were probably the dominant plant and main food source for
Amphicoelias. Though Engelmann et al. (2004) dismissed ferns as a sauropod food
source due to their relatively low caloric content; Carpenter argued that the
sauropod digestive system, well adapted to handle low-quality food, allows for
the consumption of ferns as a large part of the sauropod diet. Carpenter also
Gazelle : The Palestinian Biological Bulletin – Number 120 – December 2014