Pisanosaurus

Pisano's lizard

• Pisano · Latinised surname · Juan A. Pisano, Uruguayan-born Argentine paleontologist/biologist honoured by the name
• sauros · Greek · lizard

Pisanosaurus means "Pisano's lizard". It honours Juan A. Pisano, an Argentine paleontologist who worked at the Instituto Miguel Lillo in Tucumán and was involved in the discovery of the fossil. The ending is from the Greek "sauros" (lizard), as in most dinosaur names.

Named by

Casamiquela

Year named

1967

Period

Late Triassic

Stage

Carnian

Found in

Ischigualasto Formation, La Rioja Province, Argentina

Known from a single partial skeleton. It was long regarded as one of the earliest ornithischians, but its classification is debated. Some studies place it as a silesaurid or other early dinosauriform instead. Details of Pisano's biography are given from memory and should be checked.