![\"Recreaci\u00f3n](\"https:\/\/satdi.umh.es\/files\/2026\/09\/Diplodocus_Teruel_Europa_Norteamerica.png\")
<\/a>Picture: Carmelo L\u00f3pez \/ Taylor & Francis<\/em><\/strong><\/p><\/div><\/p>\n <\/p>\n A team of palaeontologists from the Fundaci\u00f3n Conjunto Paleontol\u00f3gico de Teruel-Din\u00f3polis<\/a><\/strong> has identified remains belonging to a Diplodocus<\/em><\/strong> at the La Tejer\u00eda fossil site in El Castellar, Teruel<\/a><\/strong>. The dinosaur lived around 150 million years ago<\/strong>, during the Late Jurassic<\/strong>. The discovery, published in the scientific journal Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology<\/a><\/em>, is exceptional because it represents the first confirmed identification of this iconic dinosaur genus outside North America<\/strong>, where all previously known Diplodocus<\/em> fossils had been found. The excavated fossils are on display in the dinosaur gallery of the Aragonese Museum of Palaeontology<\/strong>, at Din\u00f3polis in Teruel<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n The researchers studied fourteen tail vertebrae and several<\/strong> chevrons<\/em><\/strong>, also known as haemal arches<\/strong>, bones located beneath the caudal vertebrae. Their anatomical characteristics and the analyses carried out have enabled the remains to be assigned to the genus Diplodocus<\/em>. The specimen from El Castellar is estimated to have reached approximately 25 metres in length<\/strong>, making it comparable in size to some of the large specimens found in North America.<\/p>\n The significance of a discovery of this magnitude in Spain goes far beyond the recovery of the remains of an enormous dinosaur. The finding once again places Teruel and Spain in a prominent position within international palaeontology and confirms the extraordinary richness of the Iberian Peninsula\u2019s fossil record. The Diplodocus<\/em> also joins other giant sauropods discovered in Teruel<\/strong>, such as Turiasaurus<\/a><\/em><\/strong> and Losillasaurus<\/a><\/em><\/strong>, further establishing the province as one of Europe\u2019s key areas for understanding the diversity of dinosaurs that inhabited the continent during the Jurassic.<\/p>\n The discovery also requires scientists to reconsider how these animals were distributed and moved around the planet 150 million years ago. The presence of Diplodocus<\/em> on both sides of what was then the young Atlantic Ocean supports the possibility that temporary land connections existed, allowing faunal exchanges between North America and Europe<\/strong>. The fossils found in Teruel therefore not only enrich Spain\u2019s palaeontological heritage, but also provide a crucial piece of evidence for reconstructing dinosaur history on a global scale and challenge a view that had been held for more than a century about one of the best-known dinosaur genera in prehistory.<\/p>\n