In Depth The name of the dinosaur Cathartesaura can be quite confusing. Broken down it can read as ‘Cathartes lizard’, with ‘Cathartes’ a reference to the Cathartes genus which includes the modern day turkey vulture. The full genus and species name of the Turkey vulture however is Cathartes aura, and when you remove the space … Read more
In Depth Lingwulong is a genus of dicraeosaurid sauropod dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Jurassic. At the time of writing, Lingwulong is known from the remains of several individuals representing differing growth stages. Further Reading - A new Middle Jurassic diplodocoid suggests an earlier dispersal and diversification of sauropod dinosaurs. - Nature Communications. … Read more
In Depth The type fossil material was originally assigned to the sauropod genus Bothriospondylus. However, not only is Bothriospondylus considered a dubious genus of sauropod because of the lack of identifiable features upon the type material, but the type material came from England, a long way from Madagascar. For this reason the palaeontologist Jose Bonaparte … Read more
In Depth Soriatitan is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived in Spain during the early Cretaceous. Although only known from partial remains, Soriatitan has been identified as a brachiosaurid sauropod, with features seen in both European and North American brachiosaurid dinosaurs. Further Reading - A new Brachiosauridae Sauropod dinosaur from the lower Cretaceous of … Read more
In Depth The dinosaur genus Titanosaurus is a bit of a paradox. As the first titanosaur named it is treated as the type genus of the Titanosauria, a group of more advanced sauropod dinosaurs that began to appear at the end of the Jurassic and later established themselves as some of the most common types … Read more
In Depth Patagotitan is a genus of titanosaurian dinosaur that lived in South America towards the end of the Early Cretaceous. Titanosaurs are often known by only a handful of fossils, but Patagotitan has proved to be an exception. At the time of writing Patagotitan is known from the partial post cranial remains of at … Read more
In Depth Like with Saltasaurus, Maxakalisaurus is a titanosaur known to have had bony plates called osteoderms (scutes) in the skin for additional protection from harm. The post cranial skeleton of Maxakalisaurus also hints at a relationship to other aeolsaurid genera such as Aeolosaurus, Gondwanatitan. Maxakalisaurus is one of the largest dinosaurs known to have … Read more
In Depth Tendaguria is a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lined in Africa during the late Jurassic. At the time of writing Tendaguria is only known from a few vertebrae, but analysis of this show a similarity to the Australian Wintonotitan. Further Reading - Review of Janenschia Wild, with the description of a new sauropod … Read more
In Depth Titanosaurs like most sauropod dinosaurs are usually only known from partial remains such as one or two legs, a sequence of vertebrae or the occasional isolated skull. This is because their inherent large size makes it unlikely that the whole body will be buried and preserved before scavengers and environmental effects scatter the … Read more
In Depth Brohisaurus was a genus of sauropod dinosaur that lived in Pakistan during the late Jurassic. Further Reading – First Jurassic dinosaur fossils found from Kirthar Range, Khuzdar District, Balochistan, Pakistan. – Geological Bulletin, University of Peshawar 36:73-83. – M. S. Malkani – 2003.