Standing giants: A digital biomechanical model for bipedal postures in sauropod dinosaurs

Here we explore the potential of sauropod dinosaurs to adopt a bipedal or tripodal stance using digital biomechanical modeling and Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Seven sauropod species from diverse lineages and sizes were sampled, and 3D models of their femora were analyzed under both extrinsic (body weight distribution) and intrinsic (muscular force) functional scenarios. The results indicate that smaller sauropods, like the saltasaurid titanosaur Neuquensaurus, were more capable of sustaining bipedal postures, likely due to their robust femora combined with advantageous muscle attachment areas. In contrast, larger sauropods such as Dreadnoughtus experienced higher stress levels, making bipedal postures less likely for extended periods. Our analysis provides new insights into sauropod functional evolution, highlighting that species size and morphology significantly influenced their ability to rear up, which could have played a role in behaviors such as feeding, defense, and reproductio..., , , # Data from: Standing giants: A digital biomechanical model for bipedal postures in sauropod dinosaurs

[https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.2ngf1vj00](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.2ngf1vj00)

#### README – Description of the data and file structure

Associated with Silva Junior et al. [2025]

#### General overview

This repository contains the supplementary files for the finite element analysis (FEA) conducted on sauropod long bones. The data include original surface meshes, stress output files (CSV and VTK formats), Python scripts, and metadata linking models to their MorphoSource identifiers.

The 3D models were obtained through surface scanning and are compatible with software such as Blender, MeshLab, and ParaView.

This data set includes: 

File 1: Musculature reconstructed to the intrinsic models (`*.tiff`). Meshes retrieved from Blender with random colors attributed. Elements out of scale.
File 2: Resulting meshes showing von Mises stress (`*.vtk`) for the extrinsic analyses.
File 3:...,