Futalognkosaurus recon

Preliminary skeletal of the giant titanosaur Futalognkosaurus dukei from Argentina. Based on photos of the type specimen posted on SV-POW ([link] courtesy of Dr. Juan Porfiri) and approximate dimensions of the bones therein, cross-scaled with centrum depths for the published vertebrae in Calvo et. al. 2008 [link] as well as comparisons with related taxa like Malawisaurus (Jacobs, Winkler, Downs & Gomani, 1993 [link] and Gomani 2009 [link]).

I did not use the measurements provided in Calvo et. al. 2008 (or the skeletal in their original 2007 description paper) as they are horrendously inconsistent: [link]

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taxonomy: Saurischia; Sauropodomorpha; Sauropoda; Macronaria; Titanosauria; Lognkosauria

Hailing from LateCretaceous Argentina, Futalognkosaurus dukei was one of the most massive dinosaurs ever known, with enormously deep, buttressed neck vertebrae and a colossal pelvis exceeding 2m at its widest point. It's also the most complete giant titanosaur known, though due to the lack of reliable measurements it's hard to tell just how "giant" the entire animal was (and even to ascertain its true proportions, though I have certainly poured lots of time, blood and sweat into the effort!)

Initially the authors of the description claimed that Futalognkosaurus was 32-34 meters long, but a closer analysis (though still far from infallible due to lack of good published data) reveals a more moderate length of 27 or 28 meters (~ 90-93 ft.) Of course, since none of the tail has been found except for its first vertebra and chevron, Futalognkosaurus may have actually been a good bit longer - I restored the tail here at the minimum of its likely size range.

This is a work in progress, updated versions will be up soon.