Open Paleo

Lithostrotia

Upchurch et al., 2004

Its genera lived 137.1–66.0 million years ago Early Cretaceous–Late Cretaceous
Early Cretaceous and Late Cretaceous stages

Lithostrotia is a clade of derived titanosaur sauropods that lived through the Early and Late Cretaceous, encompassing much of the group's diversity from Malawisaurus through the more derived saltasauroids and colossosaurians. Its name means "inlaid with stones," referring to the bony osteoderms preserved in many of its members, though those osteoderms are not actually diagnostic of the clade: they appear sporadically inside and outside it and may have evolved more than once. The trait that truly sets it apart is its tail, with caudal vertebrae whose front faces are strongly concave, so that they socketed together, except for the most distal ones. The clade excludes more basal titanosaurs such as Andesaurus, Argentinosaurus, and Phuwiangosaurus, which retain flatter or only weakly hollowed tail vertebrae. Its boundaries remain unsettled, because the anchoring genus Malawisaurus may be a mix of unrelated remains, and different analyses have recovered Lithostrotia as anything from a small group to one taking in nearly all titanosaurs (Carballido and colleagues, 2022).

Diagnosis

  1. Strongly procoelous anterior and middle caudal vertebrae with prominent distal condyles
  2. Osteoderms present in many members
  3. Sharply angled, anterolaterally directed preacetabular process of the ilium
  4. Six sacral vertebrae

Clades within Lithostrotia

Genera placed directly in Lithostrotia

  • Atacamatitan Kellner et al., 2011 Cenomanian–Maastrichtian (100.5–66.0 Ma)Chile
  • Dreadnoughtus Lacovara et al., 2014 Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)Argentina
  • Elaltitan Mannion & Otero, 2012 Coniacian–Maastrichtian (89.8–66.0 Ma)Argentina
  • Epachthosaurus Powell, 1990 Cenomanian–Turonian (100.5–89.8 Ma)Argentina
  • Karongasaurus Gomani, 2005 Aptian (121.4–113.2 Ma)Malawi
  • Lohuecotitan Díez Díaz et al., 2016 Campanian–Maastrichtian (83.6–66.0 Ma)Spainincertae sedisunder dispute
  • Magyarosaurus Huene, 1932 Maastrichtian (72.2–66.0 Ma)Romania
  • Malawisaurus Jacobs et al., 1993 Aptian (121.4–113.2 Ma)Malawi
  • Mnyamawamtuka Gorscak & O'Connor, 2019 Aptian–Cenomanian (121.4–93.9 Ma)Tanzania
  • Narambuenatitan Filippi et al., 2011 Campanian (83.6–72.2 Ma)Argentina
  • Paludititan Csiki et al., 2010 Maastrichtian (72.2–66.0 Ma)Romaniaincertae sedisunder dispute
  • Paralititan Smith et al., 2001 Cenomanian (100.5–93.9 Ma)Egyptincertae sedisunder dispute
  • Tengrisaurus Averianov & Skutschas, 2017 Valanginian (137.1–132.6 Ma)Russia
  • Uriash Díez Díaz et al., 2025 Maastrichtian (72.2–66.0 Ma)Romania

References

  1. Upchurch, P.; Barrett, P. M.; Dodson, P. (2004). Sauropoda. The Dinosauria, Second Edition (Weishampel, D. B.; Dodson, P.; Osmólska, H., eds.) 259-322. University of California Press, Berkeley.

    Erected Lithostrotia for the osteoderm-bearing derived titanosaurs.

    upchurch2004a
  2. Carballido, J. L.; Otero, A.; Mannion, P. D.; Salgado, L.; Pérez Moreno, A. P. (2022). Titanosauria: a critical reappraisal of its systematics and the relevance of the South American record. South American Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs: Record, Diversity and Evolution 269-298. Springer International Publishing. doi:10.1007/978-3-030-95959-3_8

    Reviewed Lithostrotia, whose content ranges from nearly all titanosaurs to a small group depending on where Malawisaurus falls, noting after Gorscak (2016) that Malawisaurus may be a chimera.

    carballido2022a
  3. Gorscak, E. (2016). Descriptive and comparative morphology of African titanosaurian sauropods: new information on the evolution of Cretaceous African continental faunas. Doctoral thesis, Ohio University.

    Found that the Malawi material referred to Malawisaurus represents at least two distinct morphs.

    gorscak2016a