Open Paleo

Hamititan

Wang et al., 2021 HA-me-TIE-tuhn

Hami giant; named after the Hami region of Xinjiang, China, where it was found, combined with Titan from Greek mythology

137.1–132.6 million years ago Valanginian, Early Cretaceous
Early Cretaceous stages

Hamititan is a genus of titanosaur sauropod dinosaur from the Shengjinkou Formation of Xinjiang, China. It contains one species, the type species, Hamititan xinjiangensis.

Diagnosis

  1. Tall neural arches with neural arch higher than vertebral centrum height
  2. Neural arch on anteriormost caudal sagittally expanded
  3. Deep postzygapophyseal spinodiapophyseal fossa with inner open cavities on anteriormost caudal vertebrae
  4. Transverse processes on anterior caudal vertebrae directed upwards with abrupt change to downward orientation
  5. Prezygapophyses projecting anterodorsally on caudal vertebrae

Species

Hamititan xinjiangensis Wang et al., 2021

Type species

Named for Xinjiang, the Chinese autonomous region where the holotype was found.

Holotype
HM V22 , Hami Museum
Material
Articulated series of seven anterior to middle caudal vertebrae with proximal portions of three chevrons.
Horizon
Shengjinkou Formation, Valanginian, Early Cretaceous , 137.1–132.6 million years ago
Locality
Hami, Xinjiang, China

References

  1. Wang, X.; Bandeira, K. L. N.; Qiu, R.; Jiang, S.; Cheng, X.; Ma, Y.; Kellner, A. W. A. (2021). The first dinosaurs from the Early Cretaceous Hami Pterosaur Fauna, China. Scientific Reports 11(1). Springer Science and Business Media LLC. doi:10.1038/s41598-021-94273-7 wang2021a
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the body length, mass, and hip height estimates.

    jones2026b