Rhoetosaurus

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rhoetosaurus

Extinct (fossil)

Scientific classification

Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Sauropsida
Superorder:	Dinosauria
Order:	Saurischia
Suborder:	Sauropodomorpha
Infraorder:	Sauropoda
Family:	?Cetiosauridae
Genus:	Rhoetosaurus Longman (1926)
Species:	R. brownei

Rhoetosaurus, alternative pronunciations: Rhaetosaurus (de Lapparent & Laverat, 1955); Rheteosaurus (Yadugiri, Prasad & Satsangi, 1979), ("Rhoetos lizard"), named after Rhoetus, a Titan in Greek Mythology, was a genus of Sauropod dinosaurs from the Middle Jurassic. These animals lived in what is now Australia, and are estimated to have been 12-15 metres long.

Rhoetosaurus and Austrosaurus are the two best known sauropods thus far discovered in Australia.

[edit] Discovery and Species

In 1924, Heber Longman, self-trained paleontologist at (and later director of) the Queensland Museum in Brisbane, learnt of a large fossil reptile skeleton exposed on Durham Downs Station near Roma in central Queensland. The station manager, Arthur Browne, forwarded fragments of bone to Longman and was honoured with the dinosaur's specific name brownei. The initial collection was of 28 consecutive tail vertebrae, 7 partial dorsal vertebrae, bits of rib and part of a cervical vertebra. More material was collected by Dr Mary Wade in 1975, and still more by Anne Warren and Dr Zhao Xijin. Additional material includes most of both hind legs, right foot and some more part ribs. To date, the end of the tail has not been found. Given its relationship to Shunosaurus, which had a clubbed tail, it may be that Rhoetosaurus possessed something similar.

Rhoetosaurus Species