First evidence of reproductive adaptation to "island effect" of a dwarf Cretaceous Romanian titanosaur, with embryonic integument in ovo.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The Cretaceous vertebrate assemblages of Romania are famous for geographically endemic dwarfed dinosaur taxa. We report the first complete egg clutches of a dwarf lithostrotian titanosaur, from Toteşti, Romania, and its reproductive adaptation to the "island effect".

Methodology/findings

The egg clutches were discovered in sequential sedimentary layers of the Maastrichtian Sânpetru Formation, Toteşti. The occurrence of 11 homogenous clutches in successive strata suggests philopatry by the same dinosaur species, which laid clutches averaging four ∼12 cm diameters eggs. The eggs and eggshells display numerous characters shared with the positively identified material from egg-bearing level 4 of the Auca Mahuevo (Patagonia, Argentina) nemegtosaurid lithostrotian nesti

SUBMITTER: Grellet-Tinner G 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3297589 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature