Aegyptosaurus

*Aegyptosaurus baharijensis*

***Aegyptosaurus*** (pronounced /iːˌdʒɪptɵˈsɔrəs/) meaning 'Egypt’s lizard', for the country in which it was discovered (Greek *sauros* meaning 'lizard') is a genus of sauropod dinosaur believed to have lived in what is now Africa, around 95 million years ago, during the mid- and late-Cretaceous Period (Albian to Cenomanian stages). Like most sauropods, it had a long neck and a small skull. The animal's long tail probably acted as a counterweight to its body mass. *Aegyptosaurus* was a close relative of *Argentinosaurus*, a much larger dinosaur found in South America.

## Description

*Aegyptosaurus* was described by German paleontologist Ernst Stromer in 1932.Its fossils have been found in Egypt, Niger and in several different locations in the Sahara Desert. All known examples were discovered before 1939. The fossils were stored together in Munich, but were obliterated when an Allied bombing raid destroyed the museum where they were kept in 1944, during World War II.

This large herbivore measured 15 meters in length and 5 m. Tall. The Aegyptosaur was a dinosaur with a long neck and tail, a small skull and four legs. It was related to the gigantic Argentinosaurus, with the difference that it was much smaller. Aegyptosaurus is based on the holotype (1912VIII61), a specimen consisting of 3 caudal vertebrae, a partial scapula, and 9 limb bones, is one of the oldest examples of a titanosaurian. It exhibits minor differences with other titanosaurids, the femur, for example differing from Titanosaurus in the placement of the fourth trochanter, which is barely half the length positioned below the head. The limbs are comparable to those of Saltasaurus , Alamosaurus, Argyrosaurus. The ratio of the femur to the humerus is 0.78, and that of the ulna to the humerus of the ulna is 0.75 and the femur to the tibia is 0.69. It is possible that *Aegyptosaurus* was common prey for large predatory dinosaurs, such as *Carcharodontosaurus* and *Spinosaurus*.

Found in the Baharija Formation in Marsá Matrú, Agadez in Egypt and in the Farak Formation in Tahoua, Niger, both locations in North Africa. In 1999 an expeditionary group from the University of Pennsylvania traveled to Baharija, where Ernest Stromer worked at the beginning of the 20th century. As Stromer did not provide any map of the site, they were forced to visually match the published descriptions of it with the site's stratigraphy and the landforms with the outcrops. Using this procedure, geologists have rediscovered some of Stromer's original mines and identified a number of new productive locations. The most significant discoveries made by this team include the partial skeletons of a giant theropod, possibly a Spinosaurus , remains of Aegyptosaurus , and of the dinosaur a generator and a currently undetermined specimen. In addition to these, the team discovered about 20 isolated accumulations of bones containing at least dinosaurs, turtles, and crocodiles, plants and gastropods.
The skeleton of this dinosaur was one of several fossils destroyed in World War II. After the heavy RAF bombing raids on Munich, the bones of many specimens, like this one, were lost.

## JPInstitute.com Description

Aegyptosaurus is a North African, long-necked plant-eater that lived along the shores of an ancient sea in what is now the Sahara Desert. This large dinosaur is actually a smaller relative of the gigantic Argentinosaurus from South America. During the time Aegyptosaurus lived, Africa and South America were still connected and it may have moved to this North African location over many thousands of years, involving into a smaller version of their South American relatives.

Aegyptosaurus is yet another spectacular specimen temporarily lost during WWII. Discovered in the same location as Spinosaurus, it may have been lost in the same bombing of Germany that may have destroyed evidence of other specimens.

## Links

http://web.archive.org/web/20030625205450/http://www.jpinstitute.com/dinopedia/dinocards/dc-aegyp.html