The remains ofPulanesaura were discovered in a small quarry in the farm Spion Kop 932 in theSenekal District of theFree State in 2004 by paleontologistMatthew Bonnan. The bones were excavated between 2004 and 2006, and studied by Blair McPhee as part of his dissertation since 2011.Pulanesaura was then described and named officially by Blair W. McPhee, Matthew F. Bonnan, Adam M. Yates, Johann Neveling and Jonah N. Choiniere in2015 with thetype speciesPulanesaura eocollum. The generic name is derived from theSesoth word for "rain-maker/bringer",Pulane, in reference to the heavy rain conditions under which the remains were collected, and the feminine form of the common dinosaur name suffix,saura, meaning "lizard" inLatin. Thespecific name is derived fromGreekeo, meaning "dawn", and Latincollum, meaning "neck", in reference toPulanesaura being a verybasalsauropod not yet showing the most archetypal trait of more advanced sauropods - their very long necks.[1]Pulanesaura was one of eighteen dinosaur taxa from 2015 to be described in open access or free-to-read journals.[2]
Pulanesaura is known from partial remains of at least two subadult to adult individuals. Theholotype, BP/1/6982, represents the front dorsalvertebra missing the tip of the neural spine. In addition the referred material consists of two isolated teeth, a middlecervical vertebra, five back vertebral arches, a single right dorsal rib, threetail vertebrae, a leftclavicle, a distal righthumerus, a leftulna, possibly the fourth right middlehand bone, threeischia, a left and a rightshinbones, and two hindlimb firstclaws. The remains are considered to be conspecific with the holotype due to their close association (in an area of three to three and a half meters) in fine and stable sandstone, their consistentmorphology, and the fact the same elements from different individuals show no conflict in traits. The remains were collected on the farm Spion Kop 932, in a quarry located just over a kilometer East-North East another dinosaur rich quarry in a higher stratigraphic position within the probablySinemurian part of the upperElliot Formation, that yielded the less advancedsauropodomorphsAardonyx celestae and the much smallerArcusaurus pereirabdalorum.[1]
Fauna from the upper Elliot Formation in Spion Kop Farm
Pulanesaura's posture and skeletal build indicate that the animal was a low browser, unlike the prosauropods it shared its habitat with. Studies by Blair McPhee et al. indicate thatPulanesaura is thought to have coexisted with other sauropodomorphs found in the same formation due toniche partitioning. Its flexible neck would have further allowed it to feed without moving its body very often and expending valuable energy; a trait that later sauropods would take to extreme lengths. Studies of the Upper Elliot Formation suggest that the environment was a predominantly arid floodplain where vegetation was concentrated most heavily around the river channels that flowed through the area, further allowing the coexistence ofPulanesaura with other sauropodomorphs such asAardonyx andArcusaurus.[1]
.jpg)
