Open Paleo

Petrustitan

Díez Díaz et al., 2025 PEE-trus-TIE-tan

From Ancient Greek 'pétra' meaning 'stone/rock' (referring to the rocky outcrops of the type locality, Sânpetru) and 'titán' meaning 'giant', a common suffix used when naming titanosaurian sauropods.

72.2–66.0 million years ago Maastrichtian, Late Cretaceous
Late Cretaceous stages

Petrustitan is a eutitanosaurian sauropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) of Romania. The type and only species is P. hungaricus, originally assigned to the genus Magyarosaurus.

Diagnosis

  1. Tibia drawn out into slender laterodistal process inserting into socket on distal fibula medial surface
  2. Fibula proximal end with subtriangular outline
  3. Posterodistally oriented accessory ridge on fibula lateral surface, extending from midlength to one-quarter length from distal end

Species

Petrustitan hungaricus Díez Díaz et al., 2025

Type species

From Latin 'hungaricus' meaning 'Hungarian', referring to Hungary, the country of origin, as the fossil was originally assigned to the Hungarian-named genus Magyarosaurus.

Lectotype
NHMUK PV R 3853 , Natural History Museum
Material
Left fibula (paralectotype: left tibia, same number)
Horizon
Sânpetru Formation, Maastrichtian, Late Cretaceous , 72.2–66.0 million years ago
Locality
Sibișel Valley, south of Sânpetru, Hunedoara, Romania

References

  1. Díez Díaz, V.; Mannion, P. D.; Csiki-Sava, Z.; Upchurch, P. (2025). Revision of Romanian sauropod dinosaurs reveals high titanosaur diversity and body-size disparity on the latest Cretaceous Haţeg Island, with implications for titanosaurian biogeography. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 23(1). Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1080/14772019.2024.2441516 díezdíaz2025a
  2. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University Press.

    Source of the body length estimate.

    jones2026b