Open Paleo

Titanosaurus

Lydekker, 1877 tie-TAN-o-SOR-us /taɪˌtænəˈsɔːrəs/ Nomen dubium

From the Greek Titans of mythology and sauros (lizard); meaning "titan lizard", chosen by Lydekker in reference to the great size of the type vertebrae.

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

Titanosaurus is a dubious genus of sauropod dinosaurs, first described by Richard Lydekker in 1877. It is known from the Maastrichtian (Upper Cretaceous) Lameta and Kallakurichi Formations of India.

Species

Titanosaurus indicus Lydekker, 1877 Nomen dubium

Type species

From Latin indicus ("Indian"), referring to the country of origin.

Holotype
GSI 2191/2194 , Geological Survey of India
Material
A single posterior caudal vertebra. Lydekker's original 1877 type series also included a femur — reassigned to Antarctosaurus septentrionalis (now Jainosaurus) — and a second smaller caudal whose whereabouts are still unknown.
Horizon
Sauropod Bed Bed, Lameta Formation, Maastrichtian, Late Cretaceous , 72.2–66.0 million years ago
Locality
Bara Simla Hill, near Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India

References

  1. Lydekker, R. (1877). Notices of new and other Vertebrata from Indian Tertiary and Secondary rocks. Records of the Geological Survey of India 10: 30-43.

    Erects Titanosaurus indicus on a femur and two posterior caudal vertebrae from the Lameta Group at Jabalpur; Lydekker considered the procoelous, laterally compressed caudals diagnostic.

    lydekker1877a
  2. Wilson, J. A.; Upchurch, P. (2003). A revision of Titanosaurus Lydekker (Dinosauria - Sauropoda), the first dinosaur genus with a 'Gondwanan' distribution. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology 1(3): 125-160. Informa UK Limited. doi:10.1017/S1477201903001044

    Treats T. indicus and T. blanfordi as nomina dubia: Lydekker's caudal characters are now broadly distributed within Titanosauria, and no autapomorphies are identified in the type material.

    wilson2003b
  3. Mohabey, D. M.; Sen, S.; Wilson, J. A. (2013). India's first dinosaur, rediscovered. Current Science 104(1): 34-37.

    Reports the rediscovery of one of Lydekker's lost holotype caudal vertebrae (GSI 2191/2194) at the GSI Curatorial Division, Kolkata, on 25 April 2012; preserved largely intact.

    mohabey2013a
  4. Jones, B. (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University Press.

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

    jones2026b