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Concept
Titanosauria
Summary
Titanosaurs (or titanosaurians; members of the group Titanosauria) were a diverse group of sauropod dinosaurs, including genera from all seven continents. The titanosaurs were the last surviving group of long-necked sauropods, with taxa still thriving at the time of the extinction event at the end of the Cretaceous. This group includes some of the largest land animals known to have ever existed, such as Patagotitan—estimated at long with a weight of —and the comparably-sized Argentinosaurus and Puertasaurus from the same region.
The group's name alludes to the mythological Titans of ancient Greek mythology, via the type genus (now considered a nomen dubium) Titanosaurus. Together with the brachiosaurids and relatives, titanosaurs make up the larger sauropod clade Titanosauriformes. Titanosaurs have long been a poorly-known group, and the relationships between titanosaur species are still not well-understood.
Due to the near-global distribution of titanosaurs during the Cretaceous, titanosaur fossils have been found on every continent, including Antarctica. However, titanosaurs have the least complete fossil record of any major sauropodomorph group. No complete titanosaur skeletons are known, and many species are only known from a few bones. Titanosaur skulls are especially rare. Though fragmentary cranial remains are known for several titanosaur genera, nearly complete skulls have been described for only four: Nemegtosaurus, Rapetosaurus, Sarmientosaurus, and Tapuiasaurus. As is the case in most other sauropod groups, there are few titanosaur specimens with complete necks preserving all of the cervical vertebrae in sequence. Only three complete titanosaur necks are known: the holotype of Futalognkosaurus and two undescribed specimens from Argentina. A fourth specimen, of an unidentified titanosaur from Brazil, preserves a nearly complete neck, with only the atlas, the tiny vertebra forming the joint between the skull and neck, missing. Only five titanosaur specimens preserve complete, articulated hind feet.
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