The Prehistoric Giants Hall of Fame
What were the largest species of all time? Does the Tyrannosaurus rex make the list?
![Giant-Animals-herbivorous-631.jpg](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/vCnCsjFziaBVivMWHp7fG5oRcy4=/1000x750/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-herbivorous-631.jpg)
Largest herbivorous dinosaur
![Herbivorous Dinosaur](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/vpYjOzFLWZjZwrwqhMlcls3LzgE=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-herbivorous-1.jpg)
At the moment, the largest known dinosaur seems to be Argentinosaurus, a long-necked sauropod that lived 94 million years ago in Argentina. This massive creature is estimated to have stretched 100 feet long and weighed more than 73 tons. Other contenders in the roughly 100-foot range are Supersaurus, Sauroposeidon and Futalognkosaurus.
But one dinosaur may have been much, much bigger. In 1878, paleontologist Edward Drinker Cope gave the name Amphiocoelias fragillimus to a dinosaur represented by a five-foot-high neural arch, the top bit of a single vertebra. This must have belonged to an enormous dinosaur, but no other bones were ever found and this single specimen mysteriously disappeared more than a century ago. Paleontologist Kenneth Carpenter estimated that Amphiocoelias may have been anywhere from 130 to 200 feet long and weighed over 100 tons. Was this Jurassic giant truly the biggest dinosaur—and biggest animal—of all time? Until someone finds better fossils, we may never know.
Largest predatory dinosaur
![Predatory Dinosaur](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/u-hBqEz-FJkfHKYhLvXthaR0gV8=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-predatory-2.jpg)
And among the theropods, Giganotosaurus from South America and Carcharodontosaurus from the Sahara have given Tyrannosaurus some close competition. Both of these knife-toothed dinosaurs were about 40 to 43 feet long. The competition in this group is currently too close to call.
Largest flying bird
![Flying Bird](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/5Ckflg1y_F5jhdVGlWV-I0E69j4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-flying-bird-3.jpg)
Largest frog
![Frog](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/AGOJGGi2SdWWhsKwST8FUiIRZAw=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-frog-4.jpg)
Largest arthropod
![Arthropod](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/E5f8ilJFGFVatQgeG7bxSM60VJU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-arthripod-5.jpg)
The creature had been known to paleontologists for decades, but the description of a huge claw in 2007 catapulted the obscure creature to fame. According to paleontologist Simon Braddy and colleagues, the 18-inch long claw indicates that the aquatic predator may have been more than eight feet long.
Largest land mammal
![Land Mammal](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/rHVS9YttJwJAJUM8iaDlNB6t7R8=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-land-mammal-6.jpg)
Largest shark
![Shark](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/br0Rc9dcyyISsri1OEj2iYb-CyQ=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-shark-7.jpg)
Largest crocodile
![Crocodile](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/jgleqXic8rF2mGuX-2PQFv99lTU=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-crocodile-8.jpg)
Largest ammonite
![Largest ammonite](https://th-thumbnailer.cdn-si-edu.com/3UpAPTSkZvSwJYBoPe3cbf3XZ04=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/https://tf-cmsv2-smithsonianmag-media.s3.amazonaws.com/filer/Giant-Animals-ammonite-9.jpg)