Antetonitrus ingenipes

The name Antetonitrus means "before thunder" in reference to the early occurence of this sauropod with respect to Brontosaurus ("thunder lizard"). dating from the Upper Triassic, it is indeed the earliest known Sauropod although not the most primitive one. It had very sturdy limbs.

Name

Antetonitrus ingenipes

Authority

Yates & Kitching, 2003

Meaning of generic name

from Latin, ante (before) and tonitrus (thunder)

Meaning of specific name

from Latin, ingens (massive) and pes (paw, or foot)

[should have been ingentipes - Latin does not say **ingents or **peds but ingens and pes due to dental stop deletion before an ending -s]

Size

Length: 9 m, Skull length: ?

Remains

Holotype (BP/1/4952): partially articulated skeleton (vertebrae, ribs, partial forelimbs and hindlimbs)

Referred specimens: BP/1/4952b (some isolated bones).

Age and Distribution

Horizon: Lower Elliot Formation, Upper Triassic (Norian).

Locality: farms Welbedacht-Edelweiss, Ladybrand district, Free State, South Africa.

Classification

Dinosauria Saurischia Sauropodomorpha Sauropoda

Further Reading

A. M. Yates and J. W. Kitching. 2003. The earliest known sauropod dinosaur and the first steps towards sauropod locomotion. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London B 270(1525):1753-1758.