Giant titanosaur (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Late Cretaceous of Patagonia

Abstract

We report the discovery of a new titanosaurian taxon, Puertasaurus reuili gen. et sp. nov., from Maastrichtian beds of SW Patagonia. Four vertebrae were recovered (i.e., cervical 9, dorsal 2, and two mid-caudals). The new form is diagnosed on the basis of an inflated neural spine on cervical vertebra, and extremely short second dorsal vertebra, among other features. Puertasaurus is one of the largest known sauropod dino-saurs, with dorsal vertebra 2 measuring 168 cm in transverse width. This is the first time that a cervical verte-bra is reported for a giant titanosaur, giving a new insight on neck anatomy of neosauropod dinosaurs.