Open Paleo

Eucamerotus

Blows, 1995 YOO-kam-uh-ROHT-us

From Greek eu- (well/good) + kamara (chamber/vault) + -otos (pertaining to): 'well-chambered', referring to the hollow pneumatic cavities in its vertebrae.

125.8–121.4 million years ago Barremian, Early Cretaceous
Early Cretaceous stages

Eucamerotus is an extinct genus of sauropod dinosaur from the Early Cretaceous (Barremian) Wessex Formation (Wealden) of the Isle of Wight, England. The type specimen, part of a vertebra (one of the bones of the spine), was discovered in the autumn of 1869 by John Hulke. After confirming its point of origin with the Rev. William Fox, Hulke presented the find to the Geological Society of London in 1870. Two years later, Hulke assigned to it the name Eucamerotus, though did not provide a species name. Eucamerotus was subsequently treated as a junior synonym of two existing sauropods, Pelorosaurus and Ornithopsis. In 1995, William T. Blows gave a species name, creating the combination Eucamerotus foxi. While the validity of the genus has continued to be questioned, a 2011 publication found it to be a valid genus of titanosauriform. Comparisons with the fossils of other macronarians suggests it may have reached up to 15 m (49 ft) in length.

Diagnosis

  1. Opisthocoelous centrum (concave anterior articular surface)
  2. Large deep excavation in side of centrum beneath neural canal root (pneumatic foramen); pneumaticity unusual for sauropod contemporaries
  3. Vertical median wedge-plate (bolt) descending from postzygapophyses to neural canal crown, articulating with notch between prezygapophyses
  4. Extremely complex neural arch with composite multi-pillar neural spine (anterior pillars rising from arch crown; posterior pillars above postzygapophyses) joined by thin laminae
  5. Extensive horizontal platform along side of vertebra with strengthening ridges; large hollow beneath platform
  6. Groined interior arch in neural canal with projecting groins converging to central point

Species

Eucamerotus foxi Blows, 1995

Type species

Named for the Rev. William Fox, the clergyman who identified the origin of the holotype vertebra from the Isle of Wight.

Holotype
NHMUK PV R 2522 , Natural History Museum
Material
Anterior trunk vertebra: neural arch with neurapophyses (~5 in. long, ~5-6 in. tall); prezygapophyses with large oblong articular surfaces; postzygapophyses; composite neural spine with anterior/posterior pillars; horizontal platform extending ~5 in. from neural spine; centrum broken/missing; compact bone with thin plates and immense cancellated spaces.
Horizon
Wessex Formation, Barremian, Early Cretaceous , 125.8–121.4 million years ago
Locality
Brook, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom

References

  1. Blows, W. T. (1995). The Early Cretaceous brachiosaurid dinosaurs Ornithopsis and Eucamerotus from the Isle of Wight, England. Palaeontology 38(1): 187-197.

    Erects Eucamerotus foxi on neural arch BMNH R2522 and gives its type horizon as the Wealden Marls of Brook, Isle of Wight, Barremian.

    blows1995a
  2. Hulke, J. W. (1870). Note on a New and Undescribed Wealden Vertebra. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society of London 26(1-2): 318-324. doi:10.1144/GSL.JGS.1870.026.01-02.28 hulke1870a
  3. Hulke, J. W. (1872). Appendix to a "Note on a new and undescribed Wealden Vertebra," read 9th February 1870, and published in the Quarterly Journal for August in the same year. Quarterly Journal of the Geological Society 28(1-2): 36-38. doi:10.1144/GSL.JGS.1872.028.01-02.15

    Proposes Eucamerotus as a provisional genus for a Wealden neural arch from Brook, without naming a species.

    hulke1872a
  4. Marsh, O. C. (1881). Classification of the Dinosauria. American Journal of Science 23(133): 81-86. American Journal of Science. doi:10.2475/ajs.s3-23.133.81 marsh1881a
  5. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the mass and hip height estimates.

    jones2026b