Angolatitan
Name:
Angolatitan
(Angola titan).
Phonetic: An-goe-lah-tie-tan.
Named By: Octavio Mateus, Louis L. Jacobs,
Anne S. Schulp, Michael J. Polcyn, Tatiana S. Taveres,
Andre Buta Neto, Maria Luisa Morais & Miguel T. Antunes
- 2011.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosauria,
Saurischia, Sauropoda, Titanosauriformes, Somphospondyli.
Species: A. adamastor
(type).
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: Humerus about 110 centimetres long, ulna about
69 centimetres long. Total size uncertain due to lack of remains.
Known locations: Angola - Itombe Formation.
Time period: Turonian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial right fore limb
including scapula, humerus, ulna, radius, and three
metacarpals (MGUAN-PA-003).
The
naming of Angolatitan was a very important
discovery for the country of
Angola because it was the first genus of dinosaur known to have come
from there. Angolatitan is so far known only from
a partial right
fore limb, so details like size or a specific dietary preference
beyond just plants are impossible to establish with certainty. What
is known though is that Angolatitan was a titanosaur,
a kind of
advanced sauropod that was common during the Cretaceous. A possible
feature known in some titanosaurs such as Saltasaurus
is the presence
of bony osteoderm armour in the skin, but it is unknown if
Angolatitan had armour. The fore limb however is
enough to identify
Angolatitan as a member of the Somphospondyli,
meaning that it was
probably most similar to genera along the lines of Sauroposeidon,
Argentinosaurus,
Astrophocaudia
and Wintonotitan
to name just a few
examples.
One
interesting thing to note is that the fossil formation that Angolatitan
is known to have a very high occurrence of marine organisms from fish
and ammonites to even marine reptiles such as plesiosaurs,
mosasaurs
like Angolasaurus
and Tylosaurus
and even turtles such as
Angolachelys.
This could indicate that the holotype remains of
Angolatitan were from an individual that was swept
out to sea.
Further reading
- Angolatitan adamastor, a new sauropod
dinosaur and the first
record from Angola - Octavio Mateus, Louis L. Jacobs, Anne
S. Schulp, Michael J. Polcyn, Tatiana S. Taveres, Andre
Buta Neto, Maria Luisa Morais & Miguel T. Antunes -
2011.
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