ACHILLESAURUS
a small alvarezsaurid theropod dinosaur from the Late Cretaceous of Argentina.
Pronunciation: a-KILL-ee-SOR-us
Meaning: Achilles lizard
Author/s: Martinelli and Vera (
2007)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Río Negro, Argentina
Discovery Chart Position: #609
Achillesaurus manazzonei
(Manazzone's Achilles lizard)Etymology
Achillesaurus is derived from "Achilles" (in reference to the Greek Hero Achilles and his famously weak heel, because the holotype has diagnostic features in this portion of the skeleton) and the Greek "sauros" (lizard).
The
species epithet,
manazzonei, honors Prof. Rafael Manazzone, an amateur palaeontologist who assisted several field trips by providing valuable data about Patagonian fossil localities.
Discovery
The remains of
Achillesaurus were discovered at Paso Córdova in the Bajo de la Carpa Formation (Río Colorado Subgroup, Neuquén Group), Río Negro Province, Argentina, by a José Bonaparte-led team from the Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales "Bernardino Rivadavia" in 1995.
The
holotype (MACN-PV-RN 1116) includes the last hip vertebra, the first two tail vertebrae (one with a chevron) plus one complete and one partial vertebra from elsewhere in the tail, the left ilium (a bone from the hip), the end of a thigh, the end of the left shinbone joined to the ankle, and portions of metatarsals II, III, and IV from the left foot.
Preparators
S. Reuil.
Estimations
Timeline:
Era: Mesozoic
Epoch: Late Cretaceous
Stage: Santonian
Age range: 86-84 mya
Stats:
Est. max. length: ?
Est. max. hip height: ?
Est. max. weight: ?
Diet: Carnivore
References
• Bonaparte JF (1991) "Los vertebrados fósiles de la Formación Rio Colorado, de la Ciudad de Neuquén y Cercanías, Cretácico Superior, Argentina" [The vertebrate fossils of the Rio Colorado Formation, from the city of Neuquén and surrounding areas, Upper Cretaceous, Argentina].
Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales Bernardino Rivadavia e Instituto Nacional de Investigación de las Ciencias Naturales. Paleontología 4(3): 17-123.
• Martinelli AG and Vera EI (2007) "
Achillesaurus manazzonei, a new alvarezsaurid theropod (Dinosauria) from the Late Cretaceous Bajo de la Carpa Formation, Río Negro Province, Argentina".
Zootaxa, 1582: 1-17. DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.1582.1.1
• Makovicky PJ, Apesteguía SN and Gianechini FA (2012) "A New Coelurosaurian Theropod from the La Buitrera Fossil Locality of Río Negro, Argentina".
Fieldiana Life and Earth Sciences, 5: 90-98. DOI: 10.3158/2158-5520-5.1.90
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To cite this page:
Atkinson, L.
"
ACHILLESAURUS :: from DinoChecker's dinosaur archive".
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http://www.dinochecker.com/dinosaurs/ACHILLESAURUS›. Web access: 06th Mar 2026.
