Malarguesaurus

Malarguesaurus
Temporal range: Turonian-Coniacian
~91–88 Ma
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Sauropsida
Subclass: Archosauria
Infraclass: Dinosauria
Superorder: Saurischia
Order: Sauropodomorpha
Suborder: Sauropoda
Infraorder: Titanosauriformes
Superfamily: Somphospondyli
Genus: Malarguesaurus
González Riga et al., 2008
Species
  • M. florenciae González Riga et al., 2008 (type)

Malarguesaurus is a genus of titanosauriform sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Mendoza Province, Argentina. Its fossils, consisting of tail vertebrae, chevrons, ribs, and limb bones, were found in the late Turonian-early Coniacian-age (~89 million years old) Portezuelo Formation of the Neuquén Group. The type species, described by González Riga et al. in 2008, is M. florenciae.

Description

Described as a robust sauropod, it was initially described as being closely related to Ligabuesaurus and Phuwiangosaurus, and Mannion et al. (2013) more precisely recovered it as a member of Somphospondyli.[1][2] The cladistic analysis of Patagotitan recovered Malarguesaurus as a close relative of the Asian Ruyangosaurus.[3]

Like other sauropods, Malarguesaurus would have been a large quadrupedal herbivore.[4]Malarguesaurus is the second sauropod dinosaur discovered in Mendoza Province; the first is Mendozasaurus neguyelap.[5]

References

  1. González Riga, Bernardo J.; Previtera, Elena; Pirrone, Cecilia A. (2008). "Malarguesaurus florenciae gen. et sp. nov., a new titanosauriform (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of Mendoza, Argentina". Cretaceous Research. 30 (1): 135–148. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2008.06.006.
  2. P. D. Mannion, P. Upchurch, R. N. Barnes and O. Mateus. 2013. Osteology of the Late Jurassic Portuguese sauropod dinosaur Lusotitan atalaiensis (Macronaria) and the evolutionary history of basal titanosauriforms. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 168:98-206.
  3. José L. Carballido; Diego Pol; Alejandro Otero; Ignacio A. Cerda; Leonardo Salgado ; Alberto C. Garrido ; Jahandar Ramezani ; Néstor R. Cúneo ; Javier M. Krause (2017). "A new giant titanosaur sheds light on body mass evolution among sauropod dinosaurs". Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 284 (1860): 20171219. doi:10.1098/rspb.2017.1219.
  4. Upchurch, Paul; Barrett, Paul M.; Dodson, Peter. (2004). "Sauropoda". In Weishampel, David B.; Dodson, Peter; Osmólska, Halszka. The Dinosauria (2nd ed.). Be rkeley: University of California Press. pp. 259–322. ISBN 0-520-24209-2.
  5. González Riga, Bernardo J. (2003). "A new titanosaur (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Upper Cretaceous of Mendoza, Argentina.". Amehginiana. 40: 155–172.
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