PBDB Taxon

Basic info	Taxonomic history	Classification	Included Taxa
Morphology	Ecology and taphonomy	External Literature Search	Age range and collections

Neuquensaurus

Reptilia - Saltasauridae

Taxonomy

Neuquensaurus was named by Powell (1992).

It was assigned to Titanosauria by Wilson and Sereno (1998); to Titanosauridae by Salgado (1996), McIntosh (1997), Bonaparte (1999) and Powell (2003); to Saltasaurinae by Powell (1992), Bonaparte (1996), Salgado and Calvo (1997), Salgado et al. (1997), Salgado and Azpilicueta (2000), Wilson (2002), Wilson and Upchurch (2003), Calvo and González Riga (2003), You et al. (2004), Salgado and Coria (2005), Curry Rogers (2005), Salgado et al. (2005), Calvo et al. (2007), Calvo et al. (2007), González Riga et al. (2009), Otero (2010), Suteethorn et al. (2010), Ksepka and Norell (2010), Filippi et al. (2011), D'Emic and Wilson (2011), D'Emic et al. (2011), Navarrete et al. (2011), D'Emic (2012), Candeiro and Harris (2012) and González Riga and Ortiz David (2014); to Saltasaurinae by Zurriaguz et al. (2017); to Saltasauridae by Upchurch et al. (2004), Wilson (2006), Wilson and Mohabey (2006), Zaher et al. (2011), Gorscak et al. (2017) and Páramo et al. (2020); and to Saltasaurini by Otero and Reguero (2013) and Navarro et al. (2022).

Species

Microcoelus patagonicus, N. australis (syn. Loricosaurus scutatus), N. robustus

Synonyms

Loricosaurus was named by Huene (1927) [Nomen vanum in this paper.].

It was synonymized subjectively with Saltasaurus by McIntosh (1990) and Coria and Salgado (2001); it was considered a nomen dubium by Carpenter (2001); it was synonymized subjectively with Neuquensaurus by Upchurch et al. (2004).

It was assigned to Nodosaurinae by Nopcsa (1929); to Thyreophora by Huene (1931); to Nodosauridae by Romer (1956) and Kuhn (1964); to Nodosauridae by Tatarinov (1964); to Acanthopholidae by Huene (1927), Huene (1929), Casamiquela (1964), Romer (1966), Bonaparte (1978) and Bonaparte and Powell (1980); to Ankylosauria by Coombs (1978) and Molnar (1980); and to Titanosauridae by Bonaparte (1984), Bonaparte (1986), Carroll (1988) and Gasparini et al. (1996).
Microcoelus was named by Lydekker (1893). Its type is Microcoelus patagonicus.

It was synonymized subjectively with Saltasaurus by McIntosh (1990); it was synonymized subjectively with Neuquensaurus by Upchurch et al. (2004); it was considered a nomen dubium by Bonaparte (1996), Powell (2003) and Otero and Reguero (2013).

It was assigned to Atlantosauridae by Nopcsa (1901); to Sauropoda by Lydekker (1893), Ameghino (1900) and Tatarinov (1964); to Sauropoda by Huene (1908), Huene (1909), von Zittel (1911), Romer (1956), Romer (1966), Steel (1970) and Carroll (1988); and to Titanosauridae by Molnar (1980) and McIntosh (1990).
Titanosaurus robustus was named by Huene (1927) [Nomen vanum in this paper.]. Its type specimen is MLP 26-250, 251, 254, 259, a set of postcrania, and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is along railway, Cinco Saltos, which is in a Campanian/Maastrichtian fluvial sandstone in the Allen Formation of Argentina.

It was recombined as Saltasaurus robustus by McIntosh (1990) and Upchurch et al. (2004); it was considered a nomen dubium by Powell (1986); it was considered a nomen dubium by Powell (2003), Otero (2010), D'Emic and Wilson (2011) and Otero and Reguero (2013); it was recombined as Neuquensaurus robustus by Powell (1992), Bonaparte (1996) and García et al. (2015).
Microcoelus patagonicus was named by Lydekker (1893). Its type specimen is MLP Ly 23, a set of vertebrae (dorsal vertebra), and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is Sierra Roca, Río Neuquen, which is in a Santonian terrestrial sandstone in the Bajo de la Carpa Formation of Argentina. It is the type species of Microcoelus.

It was synonymized subjectively with Saltasaurus australis by McIntosh (1990); it was synonymized subjectively with Neuquensaurus australis by Upchurch et al. (2004); it was considered a nomen dubium by Bonaparte (1996), Powell (2003) and Otero and Reguero (2013).

Synonymy list

Year	Name and author
1893	Microcoelus Lydekker pp. 12-13 figs. Pl. 3:2, 4:2
1893	Microcoelus patagonicus Lydekker pp. 12-13 figs. Pl. 3:2, 4:2
1896	Microcoelus patagonicus Ameghino p. 89
1900	Microcoelus Ameghino p. 216
1900	Microcoelus patagonicus Ameghino p. 216
1901	Microcoelus Nopcsa p. 205
1901	Microcoelus patagonicus Nopcsa p. 205
1908	Microcoelus Huene p. 348
1909	Microcoelus Huene p. 15
1911	Microcoelus von Zittel p. 288
1927	Loricosaurus Huene p. 237
1927	Titanosaurus robustus Huene p. 256
1927	Loricosaurus Huene p. 257
1929	Titanosaurus robustus Huene p. 48
1929	Loricosaurus Huene p. 155
1929	Loricosaurus Nopcsa p. 70
1931	Loricosaurus Huene p. 187
1932	Titanosaurus robustus Stromer p. 10
1939	Titanosaurus robustus Kuhn p. 88
1942	Titanosaurus robustus Hoffet p. 54
1947	Titanosaurus robustus Swinton p. 114
1956	Microcoelus Romer p. 624
1956	Loricosaurus Romer p. 635
1964	Loricosaurus Casamiquela
1964	Loricosaurus Kuhn p. 48
1964	Microcoelus Tatarinov p. 552
1964	Loricosaurus Tatarinov p. 577
1966	Loricosaurus Romer p. 370
1966	Microcoelus Romer p. 370
1970	Titanosaurus robustus Steel p. 77
1970	Microcoelus Steel p. 82
1970	Microcoelus patagonicus Steel p. 82
1978	Titanosaurus robustus Bonaparte p. 555
1978	Loricosaurus Bonaparte p. 572
1978	Loricosaurus Coombs p. 144
1979	Titanosaurus robustus Bonaparte p. 231
1979	Titanosaurus robustus Bonaparte and Gasparini p. 397
1980	Loricosaurus Bonaparte and Powell p. 26
1980	Titanosaurus robustus Bonaparte and Powell p. 26
1980	Loricosaurus Molnar p. 137
1980	Microcoelus Molnar p. 137
1984	Loricosaurus Bonaparte p. 139
1984	Titanosaurus robustus Bonaparte p. 139
1986	Loricosaurus Bonaparte p. 88
1986	Titanosaurus robustus Mourier et al. p. 173
1988	Loricosaurus Carroll
1988	Microcoelus Carroll
1990	Titanosaurus robustus Buffetaut et al. p. 191
1990	Microcoelus McIntosh p. 57
1990	Saltasaurus robustus McIntosh p. 395
1992	Neuquensaurus Powell p. 199
1992	Neuquensaurus robustus Powell p. 199
1996	Neuquensaurus Bonaparte p. 105
1996	Neuquensaurus robustus Bonaparte pp. 106-107 fig. 40
1996	Loricosaurus Gasparini et al. p. 591
1996	Neuquensaurus Salgado p. 358
1997	Neuquensaurus McIntosh p. 658
1997	Neuquensaurus Salgado and Calvo p. 45
1997	Neuquensaurus Salgado et al. pp. 24-25 fig. 19
1998	Neuquensaurus Wilson and Sereno p. 22
1999	Neuquensaurus Bonaparte p. 161
2000	Neuquensaurus Salgado and Azpilicueta p. 259
2002	Neuquensaurus Wilson p. 240 fig. 13
2003	Neuquensaurus Calvo and González Riga fig. 4
2003	Neuquensaurus Powell p. 39
2003	Neuquensaurus Wilson and Upchurch p. 156 fig. 21
2004	Neuquensaurus Upchurch et al. p. 270
2004	Saltasaurus robustus Upchurch et al. p. 270
2004	Neuquensaurus You et al. p. 910 fig. 6
2005	Neuquensaurus Curry Rogers pp. 69-71 figs. 2.11-2.13
2005	Neuquensaurus Salgado et al. p. 625
2005	Neuquensaurus Salgado and Coria p. 441
2006	Neuquensaurus Wilson p. 177
2006	Neuquensaurus Wilson and Mohabey p. 477
2007	Neuquensaurus Calvo et al. p. 497 fig. 14
2007	Neuquensaurus Calvo et al. p. 533 fig. 3
2009	Neuquensaurus González Riga et al. p. 144 fig. 11
2010	Neuquensaurus Ksepka and Norell
2010	Neuquensaurus Otero p. 401
2010	Neuquensaurus Suteethorn et al.
2011	Neuquensaurus D'Emic and Wilson p. 64
2011	Neuquensaurus Filippi et al.
2011	Neuquensaurus Navarrete et al. p. 9
2011	Neuquensaurus Zaher et al. p. 8 fig. 7
2012	Neuquensaurus Candeiro and Harris p. 74
2012	Neuquensaurus D'Emic
2013	Neuquensaurus Otero and Reguero p. 12
2014	Neuquensaurus González Riga and Ortiz David
2015	Neuquensaurus robustus García et al. p. 45
2017	Neuquensaurus Gorscak et al. p. 14
2017	Neuquensaurus Zurriaguz et al. p. 101
2020	Neuquensaurus Páramo et al. p. 398
2022	Neuquensaurus Navarro et al. p. 344 fig. 13

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Rank	Name	Author
kingdom	Animalia	()
—	Bilateria
—	Eubilateria	Ax 1987
—	Deuterostomia
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1874
subphylum	Vertebrata
superclass	Gnathostomata
—	Osteichthyes	()
subclass	Sarcopterygii	()
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha	(Nelson 2006)
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha	()
—	Tetrapoda
—	Reptiliomorpha
—	Anthracosauria
subclass	Amphibiosauria	Kuhn 1967
—	Cotylosauria	()
—	Amniota
—	Sauropsida
class	Reptilia
subclass	Eureptilia	()
—	Romeriida
—	Diapsida	()
—	Archosauromorpha	(Huene 1946)

Rank	Name	Author
—	Crocopoda
—	Archosauriformes	Gauthier 1986
—	Eucrocopoda
—	Archosauria	()
informal	Avemetatarsalia
—	Ornithodira
—	Dinosauromorpha
—	Dinosauriformes
—	Dinosauria	()
—	Saurischia	()
—	Sauropoda	()
—	Gravisauria
—	Eusauropoda
—	Neosauropoda
—	Macronaria
—	Titanosauriformes
—	Titanosauria
—	Lithostrotia
superfamily	Saltasauroidea	Powell 1992
family	Saltasauridae
subfamily	Saltasaurinae
tribe	Saltasaurini	Salgado and Bonaparte 2007
genus	Neuquensaurus

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

G. †Neuquensaurus Powell 1992

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†Neuquensaurus australis Lydekker 1893

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Invalid names: Loricosaurus scutatus Huene 1927 [synonym]

Invalid names: Loricosaurus Huene 1927 [synonym], Microcoelus Lydekker 1893 [synonym], Neuquensaurus robustus Huene 1927 [nomen dubium]

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
J. E. Powell 2003	The same as for the type species.

Measurements

part	N	mean	minimum	maximum	median	s.d.
femur diameter	5	127.8	110.0	167.0	122.0	22.0
fibula diameter	4	53.1	50.0	60.0	51.5	4.57
humerus diameter	7	95.2	92.0	103.0	94.0	3.90
radius diameter	4	47.2	45.0	51.1	46.5	2.92
tibia diameter	4	81.1	66.0	93.0	84.0	11.4
ulna diameter	6	59.2	53.0	66.0	57.5	5.09

Composition:

hydroxyapatiteinfrao

Entire body:

yesinfrao

Adult length:

10 to < 100infrao

Adult width:

10 to < 100infrao

Adult height:

10 to < 100infrao

Thickness:

thickinfrao

Architecture:

compact or denseinfrao

Form:

sphericalinfrao

Ontogeny:

accretion, modification of partsinfrao

Grouping:

gregariousinfrao

Environment:

terrestrialinfrao

Locomotion:

actively mobileinfrao

Life habit:

ground dwellinginfrao

Diet:

herbivoreinfrao

Reproduction:

oviparousinfrao

Dispersal:

direct/internalinfrao

Dispersal 2:

mobileinfrao

Created:

2004-12-14 12:49:10

Modified:

2004-12-14 14:49:10

Source: infrao = infraorder

Reference: Marsh 1875

Age range: base of the Santonian to the top of the Early/Lower Maastrichtian or 86.30000 to 66.00000 Ma

Collections (9 total)

Time interval	Ma	Country or state	Original ID and collection number
Senonian	100.5 - 66.0	Argentina (Río Negro)	Loricosaurus scutatus (64087)
Santonian	86.3 - 83.6	Argentina (Neuquén)	Titanosaurus australis, Microcoelus patagonicus (51569)
Santonian	86.3 - 83.6	Argentina (Río Negro)	Loricosaurus sp., Titanosaurus robustus (51581)
Early/Lower Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Argentina (Río Negro)	N. sp. (51579)
Early/Lower Campanian - Middle Campanian	83.5 - 70.6	Argentina (Río Negro)	N. australis, N. sp., N. robustus (55740) Titanosaurus australis, Loricosaurus scutatus (51573)
Late/Upper Campanian - Early/Lower Maastrichtian	83.5 - 66.0	Argentina (Río Negro)	Titanosaurus robustus (52021)
Maastrichtian	72.1 - 66.0	Uruguay (Soriano)	Titanosaurus australis (59147)
Early/Lower Maastrichtian	70.6 - 66.0	Argentina (Salta)	N. australis (13307)