- Sacisaurus
Taxobox
name = "Sacisaurus"
fossil_range =Late Triassic
regnum =Animal ia
phylum = Chordata
classis = Sauropsida
infraclassis =Archosauromorpha
unranked_ordo =Ornithodira
unranked_familia =Dinosauriformes
genus = "Sacisaurus"
genus_authority= Ferigolo & Langer, 2006
subdivision_ranks=Species
subdivision=
*"S. agudoensis" Ferigolo & Langer, 2006 (type)"Sacisaurus", from the Portuguese "sacissauro", is a
genus of dinosauriform (a relative to basaldinosaur s) that lived in the south ofBrazil 220 million years ago, in theTriassic period.cite journal |last=Ferigolo |first=J. |coauthors=and Langer, M.C. |year=2006 |url=http://www.journalsonline.tandf.co.uk/(ciigzuqwmoomny2lspjqn155)/app/home/contribution.asp?referrer=parent&backto=issue,3,14;journal,1,8;linkingpublicationresults,1:300240,1 |title=A Late Triassic dinosauriform from south Brazil and the origin of the ornithischian predentary bone |journal=Historical Biology |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=1–11] Thescientific name refers to the city where the "Sacisaurus" was found,Agudo in theRio Grande do Sul state and to Saci, a famous one-leggedelf fromBrazilian mythology , because thefossil skeleton has been found missing a leg.Characteristics
"Sacisaurus" was 1.5 meters (5 ft) long and 70 centimeters (2.3 ft) high. Its long and strong legs indicate that it was a fast animal. According to Jorge Ferigolo,
paleontologist of Zoobothanic Foundation ofRio Grande do Sul state, the biggest teeth of the genus were 3 millimeters (1/12 in) long.The well-preserved
jaw indicates that "Sacisaurus" was anherbivore , and there is a process at the tip that resembles theornithischia npredentary bone. Further research will attempt to define if "Sacisaurus" was the oldest ornithischian dinosaur. Through the cladistic analysis of some of its morphological particularities, its closest relative may be "Silesaurus ".History
"Sacisaurus" was discovered in 2001 in the small municipality of Agudo, in the countryside of
Rio Grande do Sul state. Through 50 bones, scientists could assemble the skeleton and speculate on how it might have lived. The fossil was presented for the first time in the 2nd Latin American Congress of Vertebrate Paleonthology in 2005.After the work of Brazilian scientists, the announcement of the discovery of the new species was made on November 1, 2006 at the
University of São Paulo ,Ribeirão Preto , where the bones were identified and the paper was published in the British scientific journal "Historical Biology: A Journal of Paleobiology" on October 30 2006.The discovery helped scientists to study the feeding habits of dinosaurs and their close relatives, since it is one of the oldest ever found.
ee also
*
Paleorrota References
External links
* [http://jornalhoje.globo.com/JHoje/0,19125,VJS0-3076-20061101-250279,00.html Jornal Hoje - Sacissauro é apresentado ao mundo]
* [http://www.agudo.rs.gov.br/portal1/municipio/noticia.asp?iIdMun=100143002&iIdNoticia= Site oficial de Agudo - Fósseis de dinossauro foram encontrados em Agudo]
* [http://ecofalante.terra.com.br/sub/noticias.old.php?set=680 ecoelefante - Novo dinossauro brasileiro]
* [http://www1.folha.uol.com.br/folha/ciencia/ult306u13588.shtml Folha online - Brasil "ganha" dinossauro de 220 milhões de anos]
* [http://www.royalsul.com.br/paleo/galeria.asp Dinosaurs of Rio grande do Sul.]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.