Meroktenos

Me-rok-te-nos.
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Maeve Foster

Paleoclimatologist

Maeve Foster explores the Earth's climatic past to understand the forces that shaped life on our planet. Her research into ancient climate events provides valuable context for current environmental challenges.

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Name

Meroktenos ‭(‬thigh beast‭)‬.

Phonetic

Me-rok-te-nos.

Named By

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Sauropodomorpha.

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

M.‭ ‬thabanensis‭

Size

Femur‭ ‬48‭ ‬centimetres long.‭ ‬Body length roughly estimated at about‭ ‬4‭ ‬meters.

Known locations

Lesotho‭ ‬-‭ ‬Elliot Formation.

Time Period

Late Triassic.

Fossil representation

Partial remains.

In Depth

       Initially described as a species of Melanorosaurus,‭ ‬M.‭ ‬thabanensis was elevated to its oven genus level and named Meroktenos in‭ ‬2016.‭ ‬Meroktenos is a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur that once lived in Africa during the late Triassic.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬New material and revision of Melanorosaurus thabanensis,‭ ‬a basal sauropodomorph from the Upper Triassic of Lesotho.‭ ‬-‭ ‬PeerJ‭ ‬4:e1639:1-32.‭ ‬-‭ ‬C.‭ ‬Peyre de Fabr�gues‭ & ‬R.‭ ‬Allain‭ ‬-‭ ‬2016.

SPECIES SPOTLIGHT