Dinosauria
Saurischia
Sauropodomorpha
Sauropoda
Neosauropoda
Macronaria
Titanosauriformes
Somphospondyli
Pronunciation: SOM-fo-SPON-di-li
Author: Sereno and Wilson
Year: 1998
Meaning: Spongy vertebrae (see etymology)
Locomotion: Quadrupedal (four legs)
Synonyms: None known
Author: Sereno and Wilson
Year: 1998
Meaning: Spongy vertebrae (see etymology)
Locomotion: Quadrupedal (four legs)
Synonyms: None known
[Taylor, 2009]Definition
All taxa more closely related to Saltasaurus loricatus than to Brachiosaurus altithorax.
About
Click here to view Dinochecker's A-Z list of Somphospondylids.
Etymology
Somphospondyli is derived from the Greek "somphos" (spongy), "spondylos" (vertebra), and the Latin "-i" (plural), referring to the "spongy" or porous bone texture within its member's vertebrae.
Relationships
References
• Wilson JA and Sereno PC (1998) "Early evolution and higher-level phylogeny of sauropod dinosaurs". Society of Vertebrate Paleontology Memoir 5: 1-68 (supp. to Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology 18).
• Taylor MP (2009) "A re-evaluation of Brachiosaurus Altithorax (Riggs, 1903) and its generic seperation from Giraffititan Brancai (Janensch, 1914)". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 29(3): 787-806.
• Mannion PD, Upchurch P, Barnes RN and Mateus O (2013) "Osteology of the Late Jurassic Portuguese sauropod dinosaur Lusotitan atalaiensis (Macronaria) and the evolutionary history of basal titanosauriforms". Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, 168: 98–206. DOI: 10.1111/zoj.12029.
