Astrophocaudia
as-tro-fo-KAW-dee-uh /ˌæstrəfəˈkɔːdiə/
Accepted genus
star seal tail
- astro · Greek · star
- phoca · Greek/Latin · seal
- cauda · Latin · tail
The name combines roots for "star", "seal" and "tail", so it roughly means "star seal tail". The "tail" part refers to the tail (caudal) vertebrae, which are key to the genus. The type species is Astrophocaudia slaughteri, named for the paleontologist Bob Slaughter.
- Named by
- D'Emic
- Year named
- 2013
- Period
- Early Cretaceous
- Found in
- Paluxy Formation, Texas, USA
A titanosauriform sauropod known from partial remains. I'm not certain exactly why the "star" and "seal" roots were chosen, so the etymology is only partly explained.