AMARGASAURUS SATTLERI

[darren.naish@port.ac.uk]

Something that will be of interest to some. Finished reading Leo 
Salgado's diplodocimorph macroevolution paper the other day (ref 
below): in it he suggests that _Dicraeosaurus_ is paraphyletic and that 
_D. sattleri_ is closer to _Amargasaurus_ than to _D. hansemanni_ 
(I'm hoping there that I have the species the right way round). In fact, 
_D. sattleri_ might be regarded as a second species of _Amargasaurus_ 
and thus become _Amargasaurus sattleri_ he says (he does not use this 
combination - I'm hoping both names are the same gender). 

Salgado's new reconstruction of _Amargasaurus_ is interesting: as per 
Greg Paul's reconstruction, the cervical spines are independent spikes, 
not part of a sail. Particularly odd is his assertion that the axis-skull 
articulation means that the head would habitually have been held 
pointing downward and with the muzzle pointing slightly caudally. 
How the animal would have looked ahead of itself is a problem. The 
phantom bump on the lower jaw is there: Greg will be pleased:)

Salgado, L. 1999. The macroevolution of the Diplodocimorpha 
(Dinosauria; Sauropoda): a developmental model. _Ameghiniana_ 36: 
203-216.

"What would you prefer: yellow spandex?"

DARREN NAISH 
PALAEOBIOLOGY RESEARCH GROUP
School of Earth, Environmental & Physical Sciences
UNIVERSITY OF PORTSMOUTH
Burnaby Building
Burnaby Road                           email: darren.naish@port.ac.uk
Portsmouth UK                          tel: 01703 446718
P01 3QL