A gigantic new dinosaur from Argentina and the evolution of the sauropod hind foot

Titanosauria is an exceptionally diverse, globally-distributed clade of sauropod dinosaurs that includes the largest known land animals. Knowledge of titanosaurian pedal structure is critical to understanding the stance and locomotion of these enormous herbivores and, by extension, gigantic terrestr...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Scientific reports 2016-01, Vol.6 (1), p.19165-19165, Article 19165
Main Authors: González Riga, Bernardo J, Lamanna, Matthew C, Ortiz David, Leonardo D, Calvo, Jorge O, Coria, Juan P
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Argentina
Biological Evolution
Bone and Bones - physiology
Dinosaurs
Dinosaurs - anatomy & histology
Dinosaurs - physiology
Feet
Fossils - anatomy & histology
Herbivores
Humerus
Locomotion
Locomotion - physiology
Metatarsus
New species
Phylogeny
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Summary:Titanosauria is an exceptionally diverse, globally-distributed clade of sauropod dinosaurs that includes the largest known land animals. Knowledge of titanosaurian pedal structure is critical to understanding the stance and locomotion of these enormous herbivores and, by extension, gigantic terrestrial vertebrates as a whole. However, completely preserved pedes are extremely rare among Titanosauria, especially as regards the truly giant members of the group. Here we describe Notocolossus gonzalezparejasi gen. et sp. nov. from the Upper Cretaceous of Mendoza Province, Argentina. With a powerfully-constructed humerus 1.76 m in length, Notocolossus is one of the largest known dinosaurs. Furthermore, the complete pes of the new taxon exhibits a strikingly compact, homogeneous metatarsus--seemingly adapted for bearing extraordinary weight--and truncated unguals, morphologies that are otherwise unknown in Sauropoda. The pes underwent a near-progressive reduction in the number of phalanges along the line to derived titanosaurs, eventually resulting in the reduced hind foot of these sauropods.
ISSN:2045-2322
2045-2322
DOI:10.1038/srep19165