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Prehistoric Life

How long was Livyatan melvillei?

An adult Livyatan melvillei had a total length of about 13.5 m (44 ft).

What is measured: adult, total body length

Livyatan melvillei (13.5 m) drawn to scale beside a city bus (12 m) and the Statue of Liberty (93 m)
Drawn to scale, from left to right: City bus (12 m), Livyatan melvillei (13.5 m) and Statue of Liberty (93 m).

Compare

How big is that, really?

  • About the same length as a city bus
  • About 57% of the length of a tennis court
  • As long as about 2 20-foot shipping containers end to end
  • About 3 would fit end to end along an Olympic swimming pool
  • About 7 would fit end to end along a football (soccer) pitch

Learn

Facts about Livyatan melvillei

Livyatan was a giant predatory sperm whale with massive teeth that could exceed 30 centimeters in length.

Source: Nature, A giant sperm whale from the Miocene of Peru; Smithsonian Ocean, Livyatan

Prehistoric Life

NameSizeCompared with Livyatan melvillei
Kronosaurus queenslandicus10.5 m (34 ft)0.78×
Deinocheirus mirificus11 m (36 ft)0.81×
Suchomimus tenerensis11 m (36 ft)0.81×
Mosasaurus hoffmannii12 m (39 ft)0.89×
Saurolophus osborni12 m (39 ft)0.89×
Mapusaurus roseae12.2 m (40 ft)0.9×
Brachiosaurus altithorax13 m (43 ft)0.96×
Titanoboa cerrejonensis13 m (43 ft)0.96×
Livyatan melvillei13.5 m (44 ft)this page
Giraffatitan brancai13.5 m (44 ft)same size

Test your sense of scale

Which is bigger: Livyatan melvillei or Deinocheirus mirificus?

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