Pronunciation: AHN-dee-SOR-rih-day
Author: Bonaparte and Coria
Year: 1993
Meaning: Andesaurus family (see etymology)
Locomotion: Quadrupedal (four legs)
Synonyms: None known
Author: Bonaparte and Coria
Year: 1993
Meaning: Andesaurus family (see etymology)
Locomotion: Quadrupedal (four legs)
Synonyms: None known
Definition
No scientific definition.
About
Andesauridae was coined by Bonaparte and Coria with the discovery of Argentinosaurus in 1993 to house it plus the name-bearer Andesaurus and Epachthosaurus, based on the presence of a "hyposphene-hypantrum" complex (extra "joints" formed by a process on the backside of the vertebrae—the hyposphene, that fits in a depression in the front side of the next vertebrae—the hypantrum, to add rigidity and stability to the vertebral column) that other titanosaurs don't have.
However, hyposphene-hypantrum articulation is not unique to Andesauridae nor Sauropoda or even Dinosauria, Argentinosaurus doesn't seem to have this feature at all, Epachthosaurus may be a lithostrotian of some stamp, and Ruyangosaurus from China's Mangchuan Formation who tentatively joined them courtesy of Lü et al. in 2009 differs from "andesaurids" in at least 20 characters of its torso, thigh, and shin, and is probably a lognkosaurian.
As a family, Andesauridae wasn't well supported in the first place, but with Andesaurus now the sole member it's in tatters.
Etymology
Andesauridae is derived from "Andesaurus" (for the type specimen, the "Andes lizard") and the Latin "-idae" (denoting a family).Further reading
• Bonaparte JF and Coria RA (1993) "Un nuevo y gigantesco saurópodo titanosaurio de la
Formación RÃo Limay (Albiano-Cenomaniano) de la provincia del Neuquén, Argentina".
Ameghiniana, 30: 271-282.
• Mannion PD and Calvo JO (2011) "Anatomy of the basal titanosaur (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) Andesaurus delgadoi from the mid-Cretaceous (Albian–early Cenomanian) RÃo Limay Formation, Neuquén Province, Argentina: implications for titanosaur systematics". Zoo. Jour. of the Linnean Society.
• Sassani N and Bivens GT (2017) "The Chinese colossus: an evaluation of the phylogeny of Ruyangosaurus giganteus and its implications for titanosaur evolution". PeerJ Preprints 5:e2988v1 https://doi.org/10.7287/peerj.preprints.2988v1.