| Dongbeititan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Life restoration | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Clade: | †Macronaria |
| Clade: | †Somphospondyli |
| Genus: | †Dongbeititan Wanget al., 2007 |
| Type species | |
| †Dongbeititan dongi Wanget al., 2007 | |
Dongbeititan is agenus ofsauropoddinosaur from theEarly CretaceousYixian Formation ofBeipiao,Liaoning,China. It is based onholotype DNHM D2867, a partialpostcranial skeleton including bones from the limbs,shoulder andpelvic girdles, andvertebrae, which was described in 2007. Its describers suggested it was as abasaltitanosauriform, not asderived asGobititan orJiutaisaurus, but more derived thanEuhelopus,Fusuisaurus, andHuanghetitan. Thetype species isD. dongi, and it is the first named sauropod from the Yixian Formation, which is part of the well-knownJehol Group. The genus name refers to the regionDongbei and to Greektitan, "giant". Thespecific name honours the Chinese paleontologistDong Zhiming.[1] Like other sauropods,Dongbeititan would have been a largequadrupedalherbivore.[2]
Fossils of an unknown dinosaur were found in north-easternChina, in westernLiaoning province, in the region ofBeipiao. The bones lay in a valley between Libalang and Er Valleys, about 5 km north-western from Sihetun Fossil Museum in Beipiao. This area is covered by rocks belonging to the Jehol Group, formed in theEarly Cretaceous. Between these rocks numerous discoveries have already been made.[1] Xu & Norel (2006) enlisted from Jehol group 25 species of non-avian dinosaurs, among themOrnithopoda (Jeholosaurus shangyuanensis,Jinzhousaurus yangi),Ankylosauria (Liaoningosaurus paradoxus) andCeratopsia (Psittacosaurus meileyingensis,P. mongoliensis,P. sp.,Hongshanosaurus houi,Liaoceratops yanzigouensis), and especially members of differentCoelurosauria groups, such asCompsognathidae (Huaxiagnathus orientalis,Sinosauropteryx prima),Therizinosauroidea (Beipiaosaurus inexpectus),Ornithomimosauria (Shenzhousaurus orientalis),Oviraptorosauria (Caudipteryx zou,C. dongi,Incisivosaurus gauthieri),Tyrannosauroidea (Dilong paradoxus,D. sp.).[3] (their list does not include taxa described later, asYutyrannus),[4]Dromaeosauridae (Graciliraptor lujiatunensis,Microraptor gui,M. zhaoianus,Sinornithosaurus milleni),Troodontidae (Sinovenator changii,Mei long,Sinucerasaurus magodens), and further unclassified (Protarchaeopteryx robusta,Yixianosaurus longimanus). Remains ofSauropodomorpha were found only in the form of fossilsincertae sedis.[3] No taxon had been described from them, which made the picture of Jehol fauna incomplete. The aforementioned new fossils were found in the rocks of Jehol group-belongingYixian Formation, formed inbarremian. In 2006 the fossils were gained by the Natural History Museum in Dalian and the Lufeng Dinosaur Research Center ofYunnan Province offered help in specimen preparation. The specimen was exposed by the mentioned museum, cataloged as D2867.[1]
The bones were characterized by a camelar structure of presacral vertebrae, pneumatocoels on proximal extremities of dorsal costae, and medially bent proximalfemur. Mentioned traits suggest that the specimen belongs toTitanosauriformes,[1] a sauropod group fromMacronarian line, one of 2 main lines ofevolutionarily derived sauropods.[5] Titanosauriformes, created byLeonardo Salgado, containBrachiosaurus andTitanosauria.[6] It means it compriseBrachiosauridae,Euhelopus andTitanosauria, wherein the last two of mentioned made up acladeSomphospondyli.[5] The newly described specimen belongs to Somphospondyli too, but not toTitanosauria,[1] defined as all Titanosauriformes closer toSaltasaurus thanBrachiosaurus orEuhelopus.[6] This evolutionary advanced group linksSaltasauridae,Nemegtosauridae andMalawisaurus.[5] Authors, besides they classified the new taxon in Somphospondyli, described it as a basal Titanosauriformes member. As traits distinguishing it from its relatives, they point out firstlycoracoid bone elongated anteroposteriorly and of square capitoventral end and secondly long, smooth, slightly convex acetabular margin ofpubic bone. Having given the diagnostic traits, the authors could describe a new genus of Dinosauria. They named itDongbeititan. The generic name refers to a place where the bones have been found, aDongbei region containing Chinese provinces Liaoning,Jilin, andHeilongjiang. Its name comes fromchinese language. To thatDongbei second wordtitan was joined. It descends fromgreek and was denoting enormous giants fromGreek mythology,[1]Titans, sons ofUranus andGaia, a primordial deities defeated by laterOlimpic gods.[7] In the genus a single species was placed, namelyDongbeititan dongi. Its specific epithet honors palaeontology professorDong Zhiming in recognition of his contributions to research and education in the field of Chinese dinosaurs. Wanget al. didn't publish in their paper any cladogram presenting the position of the new genus on the evolutionary tree of Titanosauriformes.[1]
