Genus
Valid Extinct

Saltasaurus

Bonaparte and Powell 1980
Etymology Reptile de Salta

Saltasaurus is a genus of saltasaurid dinosaur of the Late Cretaceous period of Argentina. Small among sauropods, though still heavy by the standards of modern creatures, Saltasaurus was characterized by a short neck and stubby limbs. It was the first genus of sauropod known to possess armour of bony plates embedded in its skin. Such small bony plates, called osteoderms, have since been found on other titanosaurians.

Temporal range
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
Paleogene
Neogene
252 201 145 66 0 Ma
PBDB occurrences
1
Group
Dinosaures
Herbivore Ground dwelling, gregarious Terrestrial
Saltasaurus
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Saltasaurus (which means "lizard from Salta") was a sauropod dinosaur of the Late Cretaceous Period. Relatively small among sauropods, though still massive by human standards, it was characterized by a diplodocid-like head © LadyofHats Altered by Steveoc 86 and FunkMonk · Public domain · Wikimedia
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Classification
Dinosauria Unranked clade
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Saurischia Unranked clade
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Sauropodomorpha Unranked clade
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Massopoda Unranked clade
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Sauropodiformes Unranked clade
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Sauropoda Unranked clade
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Gravisauria Unranked clade
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Eusauropoda Unranked clade
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Neosauropoda Unranked clade
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Macronaria Unranked clade
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Titanosauriformes Unranked clade
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Somphospondyli Unranked clade
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Titanosauria Unranked clade
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Lithostrotia Unranked clade
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Saltasauroidea Superfamily
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Lohuecosauria Unranked clade
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Saltasauridae Unranked clade
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Saltasaurinae Subfamily
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Saltasaurini Tribe
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Saltasaurus Genus
Fossil sites 1 geolocated sites
Distribution
Top countries
🇦🇷 Argentina
1
Geological formations
Lecho
1
Temporal distribution
Maastrichtian (72.2–66 Ma)
1
Species (1)
Saltasaurus loricatus 72 Ma
Images 1
Bibliography
Original description
J. F. Bonaparte and J. E. Powell. 1980. A continental assemblage of tetrapods from the Upper Cretaceous beds of El Brete, northwestern Argentina (Sauropoda-Coelurosauria-Carnosauria-Aves). Mémoires de la Société Géologique de France, Nouvelle Série 139:19-28
Bibliography (1)
J. F. Bonaparte and J. E. Powell. 1980. A continental assemblage of tetrapods from the Upper Cretaceous beds of El Brete, northwestern Argentina (Sauropoda-Coelurosauria-Carnosauria-Aves). Mémoires de la Société Géologique de France, Nouvelle Série 139:19-28