Fossil of Brazil's biggest dinosaur unearthed

Scientists announced today (Oct. 5) the discovery of the biggest dinosaur found in Brazil to date. The specimen belongs to a new species of titanosaur, dubbed Austroposeidon magnificus. The material unearthed as well as a real-size reconstructed arm of the animal will be on display at the Earth Sciences Museum, in Rio de Janeiro.

Taking into account its anatomic features, the animal was approximately 25 meters long, and could be classified as a titanosaur, a herbivore with a well-developed body, long neck and tail, and a relatively small skull.

The 1950 discovery

Found in the 50's in São Paulo by Llewellyn Ivor Price, one of Brazil’s first paleontologists, the fossil had been kept at the Earth Sciences Museum, in south Rio de Janeiro. Studies did not start earlier for lack of funding, researchers said.

The material was analyzed by scientists at the Earth Sciences Museum and the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ) National Museum, in addition to Petrobras and the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE). The studies revealed characteristics previously unseen among titanosaurs, like growth rings interposed between samples of a denser bone tissue, whose meaning has not yet been fully grasped by the scientists.

In Brazil, nine species of titanosaurs have been found so far. Before the discovery of the Austroposeidon, Brazil's biggest dinosaur was the Maxakalisaurus topai, which measured more than 13 meters long.

Giant species

According to the study, the discovery of the Austroposeidon contributes not only to dinosaurs' new anatomic and evolutionary data, but also shows that giant species used to rule the country millions of years ago.

The remains of this specimen were collected near the town of Presidente Prudente, in southeast São Paulo state, and its features are similar to those of Argentine species like the also gigantic Mendozasaurus and the Futalognkosaurus.

The discovery is important because it indicates that even larger species may have lived in Brazil, said UFRJ palaeontologist Alexander Kellner.

“Since Price, we've always imagined that animals this large existed, but we couldn't prove it or produce any evidence. Today, we've taken this step, and now it's just natural to say, yes, we can find other, even bigger ones,” he stated.

Translated by Fabrício Ferreira