Puertasaurus

Taxobox
name = "Puertasaurus"
fossil_range = Late Cretaceous
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Sauropsida
superordo = Dinosauria
ordo = Saurischia
subordo = Sauropodomorpha
infraordo = Sauropoda
familia = Titanosauridae
genus = "Puertasaurus"
genus_authority= Novas "et al.", 2005
subdivision_ranks=Species
subdivision=
*"P. reuili" Novas "et al.", 2005 (type)

"Puertasaurus" is a genus of titanosaurid sauropod that appeared during the Late Cretaceous. It lived in what is now Patagonia. The type species, "Puertasaurus reuili", is named in honor of Pablo Puerta and Santiago Reuil, the co-discoverers in January 2001 of the specimen. "Puertasaurus" is based on a partial spine.cite journal |last=Novas |first=Fernando E. |authorlink=Fernando Novas |coauthors=Salgado, Leonardo; Calvo, Jorge; and Agnolin, Federico |year=2005 |title=Giant titanosaur (Dinosauria, Sauropoda)from the Late Cretaceous of Patagonia |journal=Revisto del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales, n.s. |volume=7 |issue=1 |pages=37–41 |url=http://www.macn.secyt.gov.ar/cont_Publicaciones/Rns-Vol07-1_37-41.pdf |accessdate=2007-03-04 ]

Of the four neck, back and tail vertebrae discovered, together forming the holotype MPM 10002, the most impressive is the back vertebra measuring 1.06 meters (3.48 ft) tall and 1.68 meters (5.51 ft) wide. This is the broadest sauropod vertebra known. Fernando Novas, one of the paleontologists who described "Puertasaurus reuili", estimated that the new species was approximately 35 to 40 meters (115 to 131 ft) long and weighed between 80 and 100 metric tons (88 to 110 short tons).Roach, J. (2006), [http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060728-giant-dinosaur.html "Giant Dinosaur Discovered in Argentina"] , National Geographic News, 28 July 2006. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2006/07/060728-giant-dinosaur.html, accessed 23 May 2008.] If correct, this would place it as one of the biggest dinosaurs ever to walk the earth, though rivaled in size by the similar "Argentinosaurus". It would also extend the period of time in which such very large sauropods lived; this species roamed what is now Patagonia towards the end of the Cretaceous period, some 70 million years ago, in the early Maastrichtian.

"Puertasaurus" belonged to the clade Titanosauria.

References

External links

* [http://dml.cmnh.org/2006Jan/msg00342.html Announcement on the Dinosaur Mailing List]
* [http://www.hmnh.org/archives/2006/08/05/sizing-up-the-super-sauropods Sizing up the Super-Sauropods (revised)]