Earth Science and Natural Science Research - Dinosaurs of the Bahariya Oasis, Egypt

Dinosaurs of the Bahariya Oasis, Egypt - Page 3 of 3
2003 Grant Recipient
Matthew C. Lamanna, University of Pennsylvania

After the expedition was over, and after the fossils were cleared of rock, Egyptian and American scientists had to figure out what kind of dinosaur we had. After many months of study we concluded that our dinosaur from the Bahariya Oasis was a new genus and species, that we named Paralititan stromeri, meaning "Stromer's tidal giant" in June 2001. Paralititan is a relative of Stromer's Aegyptosaurus, in the group of sauropods known as titanosaurs. Paralititan is one of the heaviest dinosaurs ever found, and is probably the largest dinosaur known from Africa during the Cretaceous Period. The humerus, the bone that amazed us in the field, turns out to be the longest known from the Cretaceous anywhere in the world.

Soon, within a few months, the Paralititan bones will be on display for all to see in the Egyptian Geological Museum in Cairo. We hope that many people, especially Egyptians, will come to the museum, see Paralititan, and begin to appreciate Egypt's rich history that goes back to a time long before the pharaohs.

Links for more information:

Matthew C. Lamanna homepage
Links relating to this project.

DinoData Paleontologists: Stomer