Name:
Aragosaurus
(Aragon lizard).
Phonetic: Ah-rah-gon-sore-us.
Named By: J. L. Sanz, A. D. Buscalioni,
M.-L. Casanovas and J.-V. Santafe - 1987.
Classification: Chordata, Reptilia, Dinosauria,
Saurischia, Sauropodomorpha, Sauropoda.
Species: A. ischiaticus
(type).
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: Estimated about 18 meters long.
Known locations: Spain, Province of Teruel -
El Castellar Formation.
Time period: Late Hauterivian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Partial skeleton including a
femur, Pubis, Ischium, phalanges, scapula, and caudal
(tail) vertebrae.
An early Cretaceous sauropod from Spain, Aragosaurus is considered to have been similar to the North American Camarasaurus in form. This means that the head would have been carried up high to enable Aragosaurus to browse upon the upper branches of trees, which were simply beyond the reach of low browsing dinosaurs. This similarity, compared with other discoveries of genera like Stegosaurus in places like Portugal has also led to the idea that North America and Western Europe were still joined by at least the Late Jurassic, and that a faunal interchange took place between these two continents.
Further reading
- Dinosaurios del Cret�cico inferior de Galve (Teruel, Espa�a)
[Dinosaurs from the Lower Cretaceous of Galve (Teruel, Spain)],
J. L. Sanz, A. D. Buscalioni, M.-L. Casanovas and J.-V.
Santafe - 1987.