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Giant dinosaur discovered in Spain, largest ever recorded in Europe
mongabay.com
December 21, 2006





Researchers working in Teruel, Spain have discovered the fossil remains of a giant dinosaur that weighed between 40 to 48 tons and was 30-37 meters (100-120 feet) long -- the length of an NBA basketball court. It is the largest dinosaur ever found in Europe -- most giant dinosaurs have been found previously in the New World and Africa.

"The humerus -- the long bone in the foreleg that runs from the shoulder to the elbow -- was as large as an adult," said Brooks Hanson, Science's deputy editor of physical sciences.

Artist rendering of a giant Sauropod found in Teruel, Spain. [Copyright AAAS/Science, illustration by Carin L. Cain]

The new sauropod, Turiasaurus riodevensis, is named for the Teruel area (Turia) and the village where it was found. The description of the species is described in the 22 December 2006 issue of the journal Science.

According to Science, "the characteristics of the new dinosaur allows the authors to group several sauropod remains from Portugal, France, United Kingdom and other Spanish areas in a new clade, or branch, of dinosaurs that has more primitive limb and bone structures than other giant sauropods that have been found on other continents in Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous rocks."

"This dinosaur is also more evolutionary primitive than other giant sauropods found," Hanson said.

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