| Lusotitan | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype humerus | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Clade: | †Macronaria |
| Family: | †Brachiosauridae |
| Genus: | †Lusotitan Antunes & Mateus,2003 |
| Species: | †L. atalaiensis |
| Binomial name | |
| †Lusotitan atalaiensis (Lapparent & Zbyszewski,1957 [originallyBrachiosaurus]) | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Lusotitan is agenus of herbivorousbrachiosauridsauropoddinosaur from theLate Jurassic ofPortugal.
In 1947Manuel de Matos, a member of theGeological Survey of Portugal, discovered large sauropod fossils in the PortugueseLourinhã Formation that date back to theTithonian stage of theLate Jurassic period.[1] In 1957Albert-Félix de Lapparent andGeorges Zbyszewski named the remains as a new species ofBrachiosaurus:Brachiosaurus atalaiensis.[2] Thespecific name referred to the siteAtalaia. In 2003Octávio Mateus andMiguel Telles Antunes named it as a separate genus:Lusotitan. Thetype species isLusotitan atalaiensis. The generic name is derived fromLuso, theLatin name for an inhabitant ofLusitania, and from the Greek word "Titan", a mythological giant.[1]
The finds consisted of a partialskeleton lacking the skull and individual vertebrae uncovered in several locations. De Lapparent did not assign aholotype. In 2003 Mateus chose the skeleton as thelectotype. The remains included 28 vertebrae and elements of the appendicular skeleton.
The lectotype was re-described by Mannion and colleagues in 2013.[3] In 2017, Mocho, Royo-Torres and Ortega suggested thatGalvesaurus orGalveosaurus from the Late Jurassic of Spain might represent a junior synonym of this taxon.[4] However, a 2019 description of new material ofGalvesaurus by Perez-Pueyoet al. identified phylogenetically informative characters to distinguish it fromLusotitan which was recovered as its sister taxon.[5]
Lusotitan was a large sauropod, reaching 21 m (69 ft) in length and 25–30 tonnes (28–33 short tons) in body mass.[6][7] It had long forearms with the humerus and femur measuring 2.05 m (6.7 ft) and 2 m (6.6 ft) in length, respectively.[8]
The Lourinhã Formation of western Portugal was likely to be formed during theKimmeridgian orTithonian ages of theLate Jurassic period. The area is a coastal region with a strong marine influence. Its flora and fauna are similar to theMorrison Formation in the United States, and theTendaguru Formation in Tanzania.Lusotitan is the largest dinosaur that has been discovered in the area.Lusotitan lived alongside species of the predatorytheropodsAllosaurus (A. europaeus),Ceratosaurus,Lourinhanosaurus, andTorvosaurus, theankylosaurianDracopelta, the sauropodsBothriospondylus,Lourinhasaurus, andZby, and thestegosaursDacentrurus andMiragaia.[8]
