DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5027/andgeoV36n2-a08

First record of Elasmosaurid Plesiosaurs (Sauropterygia: Plesiosauria) in upper levels of the Dorotea Formation, Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), Puerto Natales, Chilean Patagonia.

Rodrigo A. Otero, Mario E. Suarez, Jacobus P. Le Roux

Abstract


New remains of plesiosaurs (Diapsida; Sauropterygia) found in a transported block correlated with upper levels of the Dorotea Formation, Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian) are described herein. They were collected on the southern slopes of Sierra Dorotea located northeast of Puerto Natales (51°41’20,4”S, 72°26’07,4”W), Magallanes Region, Chile. This is the first discovery of the family Elasmosauridae in high latitudes of South America, complementing the previously known paleodistribution of this group in the eastern Pacific Ocean and the Antarctic during the latest Cretaceous.

How to cite this article Otero, R.; Suarez, M.; P. Le Roux, J. 2009, First record of Elasmosaurid Plesiosaurs (Sauropterygia: Plesiosauria) in upper levels of the Dorotea Formation, Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian), Puerto Natales, Chilean Patagonia.. Andean Geology 36 (2) : 342-350. [doi:https://dx.doi.org/10.5027/andgeoV36n2-a08]