Augustasaurus

Or-gus-tah-sore-us.
By Lilah Turner
Published on

Lilah Turner

Evolutionary Biologist

Lilah Turner investigates how prehistoric animals adapted to changing environments, offering insights into evolution's mechanisms.

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Turner, L. (2013, March 15). Augustasaurus. Prehistoric-wildlife. https://www.prehistoric-wildlife.com/species/augustasaurus/

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Name

Augustasaurus ‭(‬Augusta lizard‭ ‬-‭ ‬after the Augusta Mountains‭)‬.

Phonetic

Or-gus-tah-sore-us.

Named By

Sander et al.‭ ‬-‭ ‬1997.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Sauropterygia,‭ ‬Pistosauroidea.

Diet

Piscivore.

Species

A.‭ ‬hagdorni

Size

Roughly about 2.5 to 3 meters long.

Known locations

USA,‭ ‬Nevada,‭ ‬Augusta Mountains‭ ‬-‭ ‬Favret Formation.

Time Period

Anisian of the Triassic.

Fossil representation

Skull and post cranial remains.

In Depth

       Augustasaurus was the second member of‭ ‬the‭ ‬Pistosauroidea group of Triassic marine reptiles discovered.‭ ‬Given that the first‭ (‬and currently only‭ ‬other‭ ‬of known‭) ‬member of the group,‭ ‬Pistosaurus,‭ ‬is known from Europe,‭ ‬this reveals that the pistosauroid sauropterygians‭ ‬had at least a reasonable geographic range.‭ ‬Like with Pistosaurus,‭ ‬Augustasaurus resembles early plesiosaur forms,‭ ‬although it is not thought to be a plesiosaur itself.‭ ‬Augustasaurus is however seen to be a more advanced form of pistosaurid than Pistosaurus.

Further Reading

The skull of the pistosaur Augustasaurus from the middle triassic of northwestern Nevada. – Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. – O. Rieppel, P. M. Sander & G. W. Storrs – 1997.

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