Opisthocoelicaudia

hollow-behind tail (tail with rear-hollowed vertebrae)

• opisthen · Greek · behind, at the rear
• koilos · Greek · hollow
• cauda · Latin · tail

The name combines Greek words for "behind" and "hollow" with the Latin word for "tail". It refers to the tail vertebrae, which are concave (hollowed) on their rear surface, or opisthocoelous. This is unusual, because most sauropods have tail vertebrae that are hollowed at the front instead.

Named by

Borsuk-Białynicka

Year named

1977

Period

Late Cretaceous

Stage

Maastrichtian

Found in

Nemegt Formation, Gobi Desert, Mongolia

A titanosaurian sauropod. The type and only species is O. skarzynskii, known from a single partial skeleton without a skull. The Nemegt Formation's exact age is debated (late Campanian to Maastrichtian).