abstract
| - In 1991, paleontologists Jorge Calvo and Jose Bonaparte named Andesaurus, which refers to the Andes Mountains and also includes the Greek word sauros ("lizard"), because of the proximity of this animal's remains to the Andes. Andesaurus fossils were found by Alejandro Delgado, after whom the single known species (A. delgadoi) is named. The only known material of Andesaurus is a partial skeleton consisting of a series of four vertebrae from the lower back, as well as 27 tail vertebrae, divided up into two series from separate parts of the tail. The vertebrae from the middle part of its tail had elongated centra.[1] Elements of the pelvis were also discovered, including two ischia and a pubis bone, along with rib fragments and an incomplete humerus and femur. Size estimates place Andesaurus at roughly 15 metres (49 ft) in length, and 7 metric tons (7.7 short tons) in weight.[2]
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