Wednesday, December 16, 2015

The Giving of December. Kotasaurus

  In a nutshell Kotasaurus is one of the most primitive sauropod dinosaurs discovered.‭ ‬So primitive is Kotasaurus that the genus still possesses features that are known in sauropodomorph dinosaurs.‭ ‬This led to a lot of initial confusion over whether Kotasaurus was an advanced sauropodomorph,‭ ‬or a primitive sauropod,‭ ‬though today the interpretation of Kotasaurus as a very primitive sauropod holds greater favour amongst palaeontologists.
       The first fossils of Kotasaurus were found in the Kota Formation,‭ ‬and hence the name of the genus which means‭ ‘‬Kota lizard‭'‬.‭ ‬Another sauropod dinosaur named Barapasaurus is also known from this formation,‭ ‬though Kotasaurus is significantly more primitive in overall form than Barapasaurus.

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