A Reappraisal of the Late Cretaceous Argentinean Sauropod Dinosaur Argyrosaurus superbus, with a Description of a New Titanosaur Genus
By P. Mannion, A. Otero. 2012
87 citations recorded by the source corpus.
ABSTRACT Argyrosaurus superbus is one of the earliest-named Argentinean dinosaurs. The holotype comprises a complete forelimb, probably from the upper member of the Bajo Barreal Formation (Late Cretaceous), Chubut Province. Numerous remains have been referred to Argyrosaurus from Argentina and Uruguay; however, the type specimen has not been adequately diagnosed and referrals have predominantly been based upon their large size. Here we redescribe Argyrosaurus, demonstrating it to be a valid titanosaur genus based on five autapomorphies, as well as an unique character combination. The exact placement of Argyrosaurus within Titanosauria is uncertain, although the probable presence of carpal bones, otherwise unknown in titanosaurs, may indicate a basal position. None of the referred remains can be attributed to Argyrosaurus, and most should be regarded as indeterminate titanosauriforms. The exception to this is a partial skeleton from the lower member of the Bajo Barreal Formation (early Late Cretaceous), Chubut Province, comprising dorsal and caudal vertebrae, as well as numerous appendicular elements. This specimen is distinct from Argyrosaurus and can also be differentiated from other sauropods based on an unusual character combination (including plesiomorphic tarsus), plus one autapomorphy. Elaltitan lilloi, gen. et sp. nov., displays numerous titanosaur characters and shares several features with derived taxa such as Neuquensaurus, Opisthocoelicaudia, Rapetosaurus, Saltasaurus, and Trigonosaurus. Elaltitan can be referred to Lithostrotia; however, its precise position within this clade must await future phylogenetic analysis. The revision and description of the titanosaurs Argyrosaurus and Elaltitan provides new information on this diverse but still poorly understood clade.
Subfields: Nature and Landscape Conservation, Paleontology
View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/6cb2f3ceb567bfd33ba18334312e9b09e2fc1637
How researchers see this paper
The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.
In Nature and Landscape Conservation
In Paleontology
Citations in the corpus
- Revision of the sauropod dinosaur Diamantinasaurus matildae Hocknull et al. 2009 from the mid-Cretaceous of Australia: Implications for Gondwanan titanosauriform dispersal (2015, background): “Metacarpal III is ~0.6 times the length of the radius, equivalent to the otherwise highest known longestmetacarpal to radius ratio of any sauropod, that of the titanosaur Argyrosaurus (Mannion and Otero, 2012).”
- Osteology of the Late Jurassic Portuguese sauropod dinosaur Lusotitan atalaiensis (Macronaria) and the evolutionary history of basal titanosauriforms (2013, background): “…1997; Wilson & Upchurch, 2003, 2009; Upchurch et al., 2004a, 2011a; Curry Rogers, 2005; Wilson, 2005a; Mannion & Calvo, 2011; Mannion et al., 2011b; Mannion & Otero, 2012), a global distribution (McIntosh, 1990; Upchurch et al., 2004a; Cerda et al., 2012a), and a temporal range extending from the…”
- Splendid and Seldom Isolated: The Paleobiogeography of Patagonia (2013, background): “Austrohamia belongs to a basal lineage of Cupressaceae that had a Pangean distribution during the Jurassic and has two extant genera endemic to southeast Asia.”