Yeneen
Type species Yeneen houssayi
- Lived
- 86 to 84 million years ago, Late Cretaceous
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Group
- Sauropods
- Found in
- Argentina
- Named by
- Filippi et al. 2026
Where its fossils were found
The evidence
Today
80 million years ago
Habitat
Seasonal rivers and sandy ground shaped parts of the landscape preserved in the Bajo de la Carpa Formation. Neuquensaurus, Bonitasaura and Tratayenia lived in the same region.
Field notes
About Yeneen
What it was like
Yeneen was a titanosaur, a long-necked plant eater. It is known from part of one skeleton.
Its world
It lived about 86 to 84 million years ago, in the Late Cretaceous, in what is now Argentina. It comes from the Bajo de la Carpa Formation, where it shared the land with other titanosaurs such as Neuquensaurus and Bonitasaura, the megaraptor Tratayenia and the small alvarezsaur Alvarezsaurus.
How it was found
Filippi and colleagues named Yeneen in 2026. The type species is Yeneen houssayi.
Field gallery
More views of Yeneen
Scenes reconstructed from the available fossil evidence.
1 of 2
Lived alongside
Found in the same rock formations
A rock formation can hold fossils laid down millions of years apart, so not every animal here met Yeneen.
The evidence
The science behind Yeneen
Which parts of the picture come from its own bones, and which come from its relatives.
From its own fossils
- The main skeleton preserves neck and back vertebrae, ribs, the fused backbone above the hips and a vertebra from the tail base.
- Features of the back, hip and tail vertebrae distinguish it from other titanosaurs.
Borrowed from relatives
- Tapuiasaurus provides a model for the missing slender head.
- Mendozasaurus offers a comparison for the missing limbs, compact forefeet and curved inner hind claws.
Still unknown
- Its exact head shape and limb proportions.
- Whether it had bony armor in its skin.
- Its color and how its body changed as it grew.
Discovery timeline
- 2016SkullWilson et al.
- 2018Close relativeGonzàlez Riga et al.
- 2026Named itFilippi et al.
Key papers
The research behind what we know of Yeneen
Skull
Described the well-preserved skull of Tapuiasaurus, a comparison for restoring the missing head of Yeneen.
The skull of the titanosaurTapuiasaurus macedoi(Dinosauria: Sauropoda), a basal titanosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of Brazil. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 178: 611-662
Read the paper : The skull of the titanosaurTapuiasaurus macedoi(Dinosauria: Sauropoda), a basal titanosaur from the Lower Cretaceous of Brazil (opens in a new tab)Close relative
Described Mendozasaurus limb and foot bones, providing a comparison for compact titanosaur forefeet and curved inner hind claws.
Osteology of the Late Cretaceous Argentinean sauropod dinosaur Mendozasaurus neguyelap: implications for basal titanosaur relationships. Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society 184: 136-181
Read the paper : Osteology of the Late Cretaceous Argentinean sauropod dinosaur Mendozasaurus neguyelap: implications for basal titanosaur relationships (opens in a new tab)Named it
Named Yeneen from distinctive backbone features and compared its place in the titanosaur family tree.
Yeneen houssayi gen. et sp. nov. and an overview of the sauropod titanosaurian diversity from Cerro Overo – La Invernada area (Bajo de la Carpa Formation, Santonian), North Patagonia, Argentina. Historical Biology 38: 2652-2688
Read the paper : Yeneen houssayi gen. et sp. nov. and an overview of the sauropod titanosaurian diversity from Cerro Overo – La Invernada area (Bajo de la Carpa Formation, Santonian), North Patagonia, Argentina (opens in a new tab)
Close relatives
Other members of Titanosauria
Sources: Wikidata