The Tendaguru rock formation formed during the late Jurassic period, with the best outcrops found in Tanzania in East Africa. It was discovered in the early 1900s, and is considered one of the greatest dinosaur graveyards in the world. Several expeditions to the area were carried out by German and British scientists early in the twentieth century—and a few in more recent years.

The Tendaguru is often compared to the Morrison formation because the overall fauna are similar in both dinosaur fossil-rich layers of rock. For instance, Brachiosaurus fossils found in both formations are strikingly similar. One reason for these similarities is that the continental landmasses remained close together during the Jurassic period, allowing the dinosaurs to remain widely distributed. But there are differences, too, including the absence of large theropod dinosaur fossils in the Tendaguru when compared to the Morrison formation.