PBDB Taxon

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Brachiosauridae (brachiosaurid)

Reptilia - Brachiosauridae

Taxonomy

Brachiosauridae was named by Riggs (1904).

It was synonymized subjectively with Morosauridae by Charig (1967), Swinton (1970) and Bonaparte (1978); it was synonymized subjectively with Camarasauridae by Steel (1970).

It was assigned to Opisthocoelia by Riggs (1904); to Bothrosauropodidae by Huene (1948); to Cetiosauria by Colbert (1964); to Saurischia by Madsen and Miller (1979); to Sauropoda by Bakker (1986); to Bothrosauropodoidea by Kuhn (1966), Dong (1990) and Zhao (1993); to Neosauropoda by Upchurch (1995) and Upchurch (1995); to Titanosauroidea by Upchurch (1997); to Sauropoda by Molnar (1992) and McIntosh (1997); to Titanomorpha by Sereno (1997); to Sauropoda by Huene (1927), Swinton (1936), Romer (1956), Romer (1966), Reig (1970), Galton (1977), Ostrom (1980), Santafé et al. (1982), Russell (1984), Bonaparte (1986), Carroll (1988), McIntosh (1990), Benton (1990), Hunt et al. (1995) and Bonaparte (1999); to Sauropoda by Nopcsa (1928), Hay (1930), Roxo (1937), Lapparent (1947), Delair (1960), Parsch (1963), Tatarinov (1964), Delair (1973), Langston (1974), Bonaparte (1980) and Chure et al. (2006); to Camarasauromorpha by Moser et al. (2006); to Macronaria by Sereno et al. (1999), Mateus and Milàn (2010) and Mannion et al. (2013); and to Titanosauriformes by Sereno (1998), Wilson and Sereno (1998), Sereno (1999), Upchurch et al. (2004), Royo-Torres et al. (2006), Royo-Torres et al. (2007), Rose (2007), Taylor (2009), D'Emic (2012), D'Emic (2013), D'Emic et al. (2016), Mannion et al. (2017) and Apesteguía et al. (2021).

Subtaxa

Abydosaurus, Bellusaurinae, Brachiosaurinae, Brachiosaurus, Camarasaurinae, Cedarosaurus, Euhelopodinae, Galvesaurus, Giraffatitan, Klamelisaurinae, Lusotitan, Ornithopsis eucamerotus, Sonorasaurus, Soriatitan, Venenosaurus, Vouivria

Synonyms

Pleurocoelidae was named by Marsh (1888).

It was synonymized subjectively with Morosauridae by Hay (1902); it was synonymized subjectively with Camarasauridae by Hay (1930); it was synonymized subjectively with Brachiosauridae by Kuhn (1966).

It was assigned to Sauropoda by Dollo (1889); and to Sauropoda by Marsh (1895), Marsh (1896) and Marsh (1898).
Ornithopsis eucamerotus was named by Hulke (1882). Its type specimen is BMNH R97 and is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is Brixton Bay (Fox collection), which is in a Hauterivian/Barremian marine horizon in the Wessex Formation of the United Kingdom. It is the type species of Ornithopsis.

It was synonymized subjectively with Ornithopsis hulkei by Lydekker (1888), Newton (1889), Woodward and Sherborn (1890), Sauvage (1895) and Van Den Broeck (1900); it was synonymized subjectively with Pelorosaurus hulkei by Steel (1970); it was synonymized subjectively with Pelorosaurus conybeari by McIntosh (1990); it was considered a nomen dubium by Blows (1995), Naish and Martill (2001), Upchurch et al. (2004) and Naish and Martill (2007).
Astrodontinae was named by Huene (1932). Its type is Astrodon.

It was reranked as the family Astrodontidae by Huene (1948), Young (1958), Huene (1959) and Lapparent (1960); it was synonymized subjectively with Brachiosauridae by Kuhn (1966); it was synonymized subjectively with Brachiosaurinae by Steel (1970); it was synonymized subjectively with Morosauridae by Bonaparte (1978).

It was assigned to Camarasauridae by Kuhn (1946); to Bothrosauropodidae by Huene (1948) and Young (1958); and to Sauropoda by Huene (1959) and Lapparent (1960).

Synonymy list

Year	Name and author
1882	Ornithopsis eucamerotus Hulke p. 375
1888	Pleurocoelidae Marsh p. 92
1889	Pleurocoelidae Dollo p. 677
1895	Pleurocoelidae Marsh
1896	Pleurocoelidae Marsh p. 242
1898	Pleurocoelidae Marsh p. 158
1901	Ornithopsis eucamerotus Nopcsa p. 206
1904	Brachiosauridae Riggs
1908	Ornithopsis eucamerotus Fraas p. 143
1927	Brachiosauridae Huene p. 122
1928	Brachiosauridae Nopcsa p. 184
1930	Brachiosauridae Hay p. 197
1932	Astrodontinae Huene p. 91
1936	Brachiosauridae Swinton p. 209
1937	Brachiosauridae Roxo p. 65
1946	Astrodontinae Kuhn p. 66
1947	Brachiosauridae Lapparent p. 17
1948	Astrodontidae Huene p. 91
1948	Brachiosauridae Huene p. 91
1956	Brachiosauridae Romer p. 620
1958	Astrodontidae Young p. 25
1959	Astrodontidae Huene p. 121
1960	Brachiosauridae Delair p. 81
1960	Astrodontidae Lapparent p. 39
1963	Brachiosauridae Parsch p. 4
1964	Brachiosauridae Colbert p. 22 fig. 6
1964	Brachiosauridae Tatarinov p. 547
1966	Brachiosauridae Kuhn p. 98
1966	Brachiosauridae Romer p. 370
1970	Brachiosauridae Reig p. 279
1973	Brachiosauridae Delair p. 4
1974	Brachyosauridae Langston p. 82
1977	Brachiosauridae Galton p. 230
1979	Brachiosauridae Madsen and Miller p. 5
1980	Brachiosauridae Bonaparte p. 82
1980	Brachiosauridae Ostrom p. 22
1982	Brachiosauridae Santafé et al. p. 85
1984	Brachiosauridae Russell p. 28
1986	Brachiosauridae Bakker p. 461
1986	Brachiosauridae Bonaparte p. 255
1988	Brachiosauridae Carroll
1990	Brachiosauridae Benton p. 19
1990	Brachiosauridae Dong
1990	Brachiosauridae McIntosh p. 381
1992	Brachiosauridae Molnar p. 265
1993	Brachiosauridae Zhao p. 132
1995	Brachiosauridae Hunt et al. p. 263
1995	Brachiosauridae Upchurch p. 253
1997	Brachiosauridae McIntosh p. 656
1997	Brachiosauridae Sereno p. 444
1997	Brachiosauridae Upchurch p. 82A
1998	Brachiosauridae Sereno p. 63
1998	Brachiosauridae Wilson and Sereno p. 54 fig. 44
1999	Brachiosauridae Bonaparte pp. 149-150
1999	Brachiosauridae Sereno p. 2138 fig. 2
1999	Brachiosauridae Sereno et al. p. 1346 fig. 4
2004	Brachiosauridae Upchurch et al. p. 267
2006	Brachiosauridae Chure et al. p. 236
2006	Brachiosauridae Moser et al. p. 45
2006	Brachiosauridae Royo-Torres et al. p. 1926 fig. 3
2007	Brachiosauridae Rose pp. 41-42 figs. 31-32
2007	Brachiosauridae Royo-Torres et al. p. 185
2009	Brachiosauridae Taylor p. 798
2010	Brachiosauridae Mateus and Milàn p. 254
2012	Brachiosauridae D'Emic
2013	Brachiosauridae D'Emic
2013	Brachiosauridae Mannion et al.
2016	Brachiosauridae D'Emic et al.
2017	Brachiosauridae Mannion et al.
2021	Brachiosauridae Apesteguía et al.

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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

Rank	Name	Author
—	Diapsida	()
—	Archosauromorpha	(Huene 1946)
—	Crocopoda
—	Archosauriformes	Gauthier 1986
—	Eucrocopoda
—	Archosauria	()
informal	Avemetatarsalia
—	Ornithodira
—	Dinosauromorpha
—	Dinosauriformes
—	Dinosauria	()
—	Saurischia	()
—	Sauropoda	()
—	Gravisauria
—	Eusauropoda
—	Neosauropoda
—	Macronaria
—	Titanosauriformes
family	Brachiosauridae
family	Brachiosauridae

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.

Fm. †Brachiosauridae Riggs 1904 [brachiosaurid]

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G. †Abydosaurus Chure et al. 2010

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†Abydosaurus mcintoshi Chure et al. 2010

G. †Brachiosaurus Riggs 1903

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Subg. †Brachiosaurus (Brachiosaurus) Paul 1988

†Brachiosaurus altithorax Riggs 1903

G. †Cedarosaurus Tidwell et al. 1999

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†Cedarosaurus weiskopfae Tidwell et al. 1999

G. †Galvesaurus Barco et al. 2005 [Galve lizard]

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†Galvesaurus herreroi Barco et al. 2005

Invalid names: Galveosaurus herreroi Sánchez-Hernández 2005 [objective synonym]

G. †Giraffatitan Paul 1988

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†Brachiosaurus (Giraffatitan) brancai Janensch 1914

†Giraffatitan brancai Janensch 1914

Invalid names: Brachiosaurus fraasi Janensch 1914 [synonym]

G. †Lusotitan Antunes and Mateus 2003

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†Lusotitan atalaiensis Lapparent and Zbyszewski 1957

G. †Sonorasaurus Ratkevich 1998

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†Sonorasaurus thompsoni Ratkevich 1998

G. †Soriatitan Royo-Torres et al. 2017

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†Soriatitan golmayensis Royo-Torres et al. 2017

G. †Venenosaurus Tidwell et al. 2001

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†Venenosaurus dicrocei Tidwell et al. 2001

G. †Vouivria Mannion et al. 2017

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†Vouivria damparisensis Mannion et al. 2017

Invalid names: Astrodontidae Huene 1932 [synonym], Bellusaurinae Dong 1990 [empty], Brachiosaurinae Huene 1927 [empty], Camarasaurinae Nopcsa 1928 [empty], Euhelopodinae Romer 1956 [empty], Klamelisaurinae Zhao 1993 [empty], Ornithopsis eucamerotus Hulke 1882 [nomen dubium], Pleurocoelidae Marsh 1888 [synonym]

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
B. F. Nopcsa 1928	teeth strong; anterior limbs long
F. v. Huene 1948	Presacrals with pleurocoela, but not so in caudals. Front leg equal or greater length than hind leg. Middle and Upper Jurassic.
F. v. Huene 1948 (Astrodontidae)	In certain instances a much increased number of cervicals. Whole Cretaceous.
M. P. Taylor 2009	Ratio of humerus:femur length ≥ 0.90 (character 206); centroprezygapophyseal lamina on middle and posterior dorsal vertebrae undivided at upper end (character 138); anterior dorsal vertebrae with long diapophyses (Janensch, 1950a:72); neural spines low in posterior dorsals, taller anteriorly (Janensch, 1950a:72); ilium with strongly developed anterior wing (Janensch, 1961:200); ilium with compressed pubic peduncle (Janensch, 1961:200); ratio of mediolateral:anteroposterior diameter of femur at midshaft ≥ 1.85 (character 284).