Drag to rotate the Brontotherium, scroll or pinch to zoom, and click a body part - the head, a Y-shaped nasal horn, a foreleg, or the tail - to read what fossils tell us about it. The panel beside the model carries the real figures.
Brontotherium was a Late Eocene mammal - a brontothere, not a dinosaur. Turn on the human figure to see how a roughly 2.5 m shoulder height dwarfs a person. Many specimens historically called Brontotherium are now placed in Megacerops.
The colors and skin pattern here are an artistic reconstruction; fossils preserve bone, not soft tissue or color. The body proportions follow a fleshed reconstruction, but the measurements in the panel are the ones actually published.
Brontotherium 3D Viewer
This page renders a Brontotherium as a 3D model you can spin in the browser - drag to rotate, scroll or pinch to zoom, toggle a 1.8 m person beside it for scale, and click a body region to read a fact.
Brontotherium was a horned brontothere mammal, not a dinosaur. It lived in the Late Eocene of North America, about 38-34 million years ago. The historical name Brontotherium is widely treated as overlapping Megacerops. A well-known mounted skeleton (YPM VP 12048) measured about 2.5 m at the shoulder and about 4.6 m long including the tail; mass estimates commonly fall around 3-4 tonnes (published range about 2-5 t).
| Measure | Figure |
|---|---|
| Length | about 4.6-5 m (panel baseline 4.6 m) |
| Shoulder height | about 2.5 m |
| Weight | about 2-5 tonnes (panel baseline 3.5 t) |
| When it lived | about 38-34 million years ago (Late Eocene) |
| Diet | Herbivore (browser; brontothere mammal) |
Everything runs on your device with WebGL - no account, nothing sent to a server. Soft-tissue color is an artistic reconstruction; this model is not a fossil-accurate skeleton. Compare with the Moropus 3D Viewer (also a mammal, not a dinosaur).
Frequently Asked Questions
How big was Brontotherium?
Large adults stood about 2.5 m at the shoulder. Length is about 4.6-5 m. Mass estimates range about 2-5 tonnes; the panel baseline is 3.5 t. Turn on the human figure for scale.
Is Brontotherium a dinosaur?
No. It was a Late Eocene brontothere - an odd-toed ungulate mammal with blunt Y-shaped nasal horns. This site also hosts other non-dinosaurs when readers search for them here.
Is Brontotherium the same as Megacerops?
Many fossils historically labeled Brontotherium are now placed in Megacerops. This page keeps the popular search name Brontotherium and states the synonymy honestly in the facts panel.
When and where did it live?
Late Eocene North America, about 38-34 million years ago (Chadronian). It was among the largest land mammals of its time.
Is the model scientifically accurate?
Size follows published figures with ranges, but skin color and soft tissue are artistic. This is not a fossil-accurate skeleton.
Do I need to install anything to view it?
No. The model renders in your browser with WebGL - no app, no account, and nothing about your visit is sent to a server. When available, a free-licensed glTF model may swap in after first paint.