Zby
| Zby Temporal range: Late Jurassic, | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Holotype fossils. | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | Saurischia |
| Clade: | †Sauropodomorpha |
| Clade: | †Sauropoda |
| Clade: | †Turiasauria |
| Genus: | †Zby Mateus, Mannion & Upchurch, 2014 |
| Type species | |
| †Zby atlanticus Mateus, Mannion & Upchurch, 2014 | |
Zby is an extinct genus of turiasaurian sauropod dinosaur known from the Late Jurassic, particularly late Kimmeridgian stage of the Lourinhã Formation, in central west Portugal. It contains a single species, Zby atlanticus.[1] It is named after Georges Zbyszewski, who studied the geology and paleontology of Portugal.
Discovery and naming
[edit]Zby is known solely from its holotype, a closely associated partial skeleton including a complete tooth with root, a fragment of cervical neural arch, an anterior chevron, and an almost complete right pectoral girdle and forelimb. It was discovered in 1996 in the Lourinhã Formation, Portugal by Octávio Mateus.[1]
Zby was first described and named by Octávio Mateus, Philip D. Mannion and Paul Upchurch in 2014 and the type species is Zby atlanticus, although it was initially thought to be Turiasaurus riodevensis.[2]
Description
[edit]
Zby is differentiated from other sauropods based on four autapomorphies, including a prominent posteriorly projecting ridge on the humerus at the level of the deltopectoral crest. Zby is suggested to be closely related to T. riodevensis from Spain and Portugal, based on its tooth morphology, extreme anteroposterior compression of the proximal end of the radius, and strong beveling of the lateral half of the distal end of the radius, while some other forelimb traits distinguish these two genera. Nearly all other anatomical features suggest that Zby is a non-neosauropod eusauropod, confirming its position as a turiasaurian.[1] Zby is estimated to measure around 15 to 19 metres (49 to 62 ft) in length and 22 tonnes in weight.[3][4][5][6] Zby and related turiasaurs,such as Moabosaurus have leg proportions similar to camarasaurids.[7]
Diet
[edit]Zby was mostly a herbivorous dinosaur. It was unknown on what type of vegetation it consumed on, it most likely ate the ones that herbivore dinosaurs ate, such as Cycads, ferns, and low-lying vegetation.
References
[edit]- 1 2 3 Mateus, O. V.; Mannion, P. D.; Upchurch, P. (2014). "Zby atlanticus, a new turiasaurian sauropod (Dinosauria, Eusauropoda) from the Late Jurassic of Portugal". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 34 (3): 618. Bibcode:2014JVPal..34..618M. doi:10.1080/02724634.2013.822875. S2CID 59387149.
- ↑ Mateus, O. (23 January 2020). "The sauropod dinosaur Turiasaurus riodevensis in the Late Jurassic of Portugal". Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. 29: 144A. Archived from the original on 7 October 2019. Retrieved 23 January 2020.
- ↑ Larramendi, Asier (2020). Dinosaur Facts and Figures. The Sauropods and Other Sauropodomorphs. Princeton University.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ↑ "Museum of Lourinha". 2019.
- ↑ "Zby atlanticus - Beschreibung, Dinodata.de". dinodata.de. Archived from the original on 12 January 2026. Retrieved 23 July 2026.
- ↑ Jones, Bryce (2026). The Princeton Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs: Sauropods. Princeton University.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ↑ Britt, Brooks (1 January 2017). "MOABOSAURUS UTAHENSIS, N. Gen., N. SP., A New Sauropod From The Early Cretaceous (Aptian) of North America". Academia.
