Marisaurus

Mah-re-sore-us.
Published on

Benjamin Gutierrez

Vertebrate Paleontologist

Benjamin Gutierrez is a leading expert on dinosaurs, particularly the mighty theropods. His fieldwork in South America has uncovered new species and provided insights into dinosaur social structures.

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Name

Marisaurus ‭(‬Mari lizard‭)‬.

Phonetic

Mah-re-sore-us.

Named By

M.‭ ‬Sadiq Malkani‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.

Classification

Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Saurischia,‭ ‬Sauropodomorpha,‭ ‬Sauropoda,‭ ‬Titanosauria,‭ ‬Balochisauridae‭?

Diet

Herbivore.

Species

M.‭ ‬jeffi‭

Size

Uncertain due to lack of remains.

Known locations

Pakistan,‭ ‬Balochistan‭ ‬-‭ ‬Pab Formation.

Time Period

Maastrichtian of the Cretaceous.

Fossil representation

Described from caudal‭ (‬tail‭) ‬vertebrae.‭ ‬Further vertebrae,‭ ‬partial hind limbs and partial skull remains have been attributed to the genus.

In Depth

       In‭ ‬2006‭ ‬the palaeontologists M.‭ ‬Sadiq Malkani described five new genera of titanosaur,‭ ‬Marisaurus,‭ ‬Balochisaurus,‭ ‬Sulaimanisaurus,‭ ‬Khetranisaurus and Pakisaurus,‭ ‬all from caudal vertebrae.‭ ‬From these only Marisaurus and Balochisaurus have had skull remains attributed to them,‭ ‬and only Marisaurus has‭ (‬partial‭) ‬rear limb bones attributed to the genus.‭ ‬Marisaurus and Balochisaurus were also classified into a new group created by Malkani,‭ ‬the Balochisauridae,‭ ‬which was created along with the Pakisauridae for the other three genera of titanosaur named by Malkani in‭ ‬2006.

       In‭ ‬2006‭ ‬Malkani also named a new abelisaurid theropod called Vitakridrinda from the same formation as these titanosaurs.

Further Reading

-‭ ‬Biodiversity of saurischian dinosaurs from the latest Cretaceous Park of Pakistan,‭ ‬M.‭ ‬Sadiq Malkani‭ ‬-‭ ‬2006.

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