Isisaurus
Name: Isisaurus
(Indian Statistical Institute
lizard).
Phonetic: I-si-sore-us.
Named By: Wilson & Upchurch - 2003.
Synonyms: Titanosaurus colberti.
Classification: Chordata, Reptila, Dinosauria,
Sauropodomorpha, Sauropoda, Titanosauria, Antarctosauridae.
Species: I. colberti (type).
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: Total size uncertain due to incomplete
remains, but at least about 14-15 meters long for the holotype
individual. Holotype individuals humerus 148 centimetres long,
and Ulna 80 centimetres long.
Known locations: India - Lameta Formation.
Time period: Maastrichtian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Very well preserved with much
of the post cranial skeleton known. However, skull and posterior
portion of the tail are unknown.
Originally
named in 1997 as Titanosaurus colberti by Jain
and Bandyopadhyay,
a new study by Wilson and Upchurch in 2003 saw the fossils
renamed as a new genus, Isisaurus. Isisaurus
was named after the
Indian Statistical Institute and should not be confused with the
goddess Isis from Ancient Egyptian mythology.
Isisaurus
was a moderately size titanosaur
that roamed India during the late
Cretaceous period. Fungal analysis of coprolites attributed to
Isisaurus has revealed that Isisaurus
probably fed upon a variety of
different trees. This would confirm that Isisaurus
was a high
browser. Isisaurus would have shared its
environment with other
similar dinosaurs such as Jainosaurus
as well as predatory theropods
like the abelisaur
Rajasaurus
which may have posed a serious threat to young
juveniles of both of these titanosaurs.
Further reading
- New Titanosaurid (Dinosauria: Sauropoda) from the Late Cretaceous of
Central India - Sohan L. Jain, Saswati Bandyopadhyay - 1997.
- A revision of Titanosaurus Lydekker (Dinosauria –
Sauropoda), the
first dinosaur genus with a 'Gondwanan' distribution - Jeffrey A.
Wilson & Paul Upchurch - 2003.
- Fungi in dinosaurian (Isisaurus) coprolites from
the Lameta Formation
(Maastrichtian) and its reflection on food habit and environment. -
Micropaleontology, 51(1): 73-82. - N. Sharma, R. K. Kar, A. Agarwal
& R. Kar - 2005.
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