| Efraasia Fossil range: Late Triassic | |
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| Scientific classification
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Efraasia | |
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Efraasia (pronounced "E-FRAHS-ee-A") was a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur. It was a quadrupedal herbivore which lived during the Late Triassic around 210 million years ago, in what is now Germany. It is named after Eberhard Fraas, its discoverer.
Classification and history[]
The fossils of Efraasia have been misidentified at least four times. Originally the fossils that would become known as Efraasia were mixed in with an unrelated rauisuchian. The mixed-up fossils were named Teratosaurus by Friedrich von Huene in 1908, and when the mistake was discovered by Eberhard Fraas, the rauisuchian portions inherited the Teratosaurus name. Fraas actually considered Efraasia to be synonymous with another dinosaur, Thecodontosaurus. In 1932 it was identified as Palaeosaurus.
By 1984, it was thought the remaining fossils were actually portions of a juvenile Sellosaurus, but eighteen years later, were finally identified as a separate genus. The name Efraasia was given to these fossils.
The type species is E. minor.
Description[]
Efraasia is a primitive sauropodomorph, somewhat more advanced than Thecodontosaurus, but less advanced than prosauropods like Plateosaurus and sauropods like Anchisaurus. Like many primitive sauropodomorphs, Efraasia might have been partially bipedal and partly quadrupedal. It had long fingers and mobile thumbs, with which it would have been able to grasp food, but the shape of its wrists would have allowed to walk easily on all fours.[1]
Efraasia was once thought to be a relatively small dinosaur, but this was because the known fossils were from a juvenile animal. It is no known that it attained a length of 6 meters (20 ft) in adulthood.
Classification[]
References[]
- ^ Palmer, D., ed (1999). The Marshall Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs and Prehistoric Animals. London: Marshall Editions. p. 123. ISBN 1-84028-152-9.
- http://www.palaeos.com/Vertebrates/Units/330Sauropodomorpha/330.100.html
- http://www.thescelosaurus.com/sauropodomorpha.htm
- http://www.thescelosaurus.com/dinoef.htm
