Galveosaurus
"Galve lizard"
Type species Galveosaurus herreroi
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Group
- Sauropods
- Named by
- Sánchez-Hernández 2005
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
No finds with map coordinates are recorded yet.
Habitat
It lived on a river-fed coastal plain in what is now Spain, near lagoons and tidal flats. Other sauropods in the region included Turiasaurus and Losillasaurus.
Field notes
About Galveosaurus
What it was like
Galveosaurus was a long-necked, four-legged plant eater, known from part of the backbone, ribs and limbs.
Its exact place among the sauropods is debated.
Its world
It lived in the Late Jurassic in what is now eastern Spain.
How it was found
Sánchez-Hernández named Galveosaurus in 2005, after the village where it was found. In the same year other scientists gave the same bones a slightly different name, which caused a long dispute over which name counts.
Field gallery
More views of Galveosaurus
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 3
The evidence
The science behind Galveosaurus
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- The type specimen is a back vertebra; neck, back and tail vertebrae, ribs, upper arm bones and shoulder and pelvic bones have been assigned to it.
- Deep hollows in the vertebrae held air sacs that extended into the bones.
Borrowed from relatives
- Its missing skull is restored by comparison with Europasaurus.
Still unknown
- The shape of its skull.
- Its color and skin covering.
- Its exact place in the sauropod family tree changes with the analysis used.
Discovery timeline
- 2005Named itSÁNCHEZ-HERNÁNDEZ
- 2006Family treeSÁNCHEZ-HERNÁNDEZ
- 2019Family treePérez-Pueyo et al.
- 2026Family treeReutter et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Galveosaurus
Named it
Named a sauropod from a back vertebra and other bones found near it in Spain.
Galveosaurus herreroi, a new sauropod dinosaur from Villar del Arzobispo Formation (Tithonian-Berriasian) of Spain. Zootaxa 1034
Read the paper : Galveosaurus herreroi, a new sauropod dinosaur from Villar del Arzobispo Formation (Tithonian-Berriasian) of Spain (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Argued that Galveosaurus was published before Galvesaurus and should take priority as the name for the same dinosaur.
The new sauropod from Spain: Galveosaurus or Galvesaurus? Zootaxa 1201
Read the paper : The new sauropod from Spain: Galveosaurus or Galvesaurus? (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Described additional shoulder and pelvic bones, placed the animal close to Lusotitan, and restricted its age to the Late Jurassic.
New contributions to the phylogenetic position of the sauropod Galvesaurus herreroi from the late Kimmeridgian-early Tithonian (Jurassic) of Teruel (Spain). Boletín Geológico y Minero 130: 375-392
Read the paper : New contributions to the phylogenetic position of the sauropod Galvesaurus herreroi from the late Kimmeridgian-early Tithonian (Jurassic) of Teruel (Spain) (opens in a new tab)Family tree
Different analyses placed Galveosaurus on different early branches of Macronaria.
Bicharracosaurus dionidei, gen. et sp. nov., a new macronarian (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Late Jurassic Cañadón Calcáreo Formation of Argentina and the problematic early evolution of macronarians. PeerJ 14: e20945
Read the paper : Bicharracosaurus dionidei, gen. et sp. nov., a new macronarian (Dinosauria, Sauropoda) from the Late Jurassic Cañadón Calcáreo Formation of Argentina and the problematic early evolution of macronarians (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Macronaria
Sources: Wikidata