Pronunciation: loh-HWAY-co-TIE-tuhn
Meaning: Lo Hueco giant
Author/s: Díez Díaz et al. (2016)
Synonyms: None known
First Discovery: Cuenca, Spain
Discovery Chart Position: #929
Lohuecotitan pandafilandi
(Pandafilando's Lo Hueco giant)Etymology
Lohuecotitan is derived from "Lo Hueco" (for the Lo Hueco locality where it was found) and the Greek "titan" (for the giant pre-Olympian gods of Greek mythology).
The species epithet, pandafilandi, refers to Pandafilando de la fosca vista (Pan-philanderer of the menacing gaze); a fearsome womanizing giant that was be-headed in a dream by Don Quixote of La Mancha. Funnily enough, the holotype body of Lohuecotitan had been relieved of its head by Old Father Time, for real.
ZooBank registry: urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:D0D99DC6-9189-4183-A2B3-47EE830E1584.
Discovery
The remains of Lohuecotitan were discovered at "Lo Hueco" in the Villalba de la Sierra Formation, near the village of Fuentes, Cuenca, Spain. The site—which has so far yielded more than 10,000 fossils, half of which belong to titanosaurs—was found during the cutting of a little hill for installation of the railway of the Madrid-Levante high-speed train in 2007. Unfortunately, by the time its importance was realised, many fossils had already been destroyed.
The holotype (HUE-EC-01) is a partial skull-less skeleton, including vertebrae, ribs, chevrons, an arm bone (ulna), a partial hip, and partial right foot.
Preparators
C. de Miguel Chaves (UNED), I. Nárvaez (UNED) and A. Elvira (UNED).
