-Andy- Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Recently I purchased a "Titanosaurus" egg shell from Patagonia, Argentina. I immediately realized how similar it looked to my Saltasaurus egg shell, and then I read that the "Titanosaurus" is a dubious genus and may not actually be a specific species of dinosaur. To top it off, my Saltasaurus egg shell is from Patagonia, Argentina as well, and a google search showed mine was consistent with those that were being sold online. Question is, do I have an actual "Titanosaurus" egg shell, or is it merely a mis-labeled Saltasaurus egg shell? Thanks! Looking forward to meeting my fellow Singaporean collectors! Do PM me if you are a Singaporean, or an overseas fossil-collector coming here for a holiday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Auspex Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 ...Question is, do I have an actual "Titanosaurus" egg shell, or is it merely a mis-labeled Saltasaurus egg shell? Eggs are essentially trace fossils unless they are found in clear association. I don't think there is any way to determine with confidence which are whose and whose are which. "There has been an alarming increase in the number of things I know nothing about." - Ashleigh Ellwood Brilliant “Try to learn something about everything and everything about something.” - Thomas Henry Huxley >Paleontology is an evolving science. >May your wonders never cease! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
S233 Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I agree with Auspex. : ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
erose Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 Just have to wait until it hatches... Some eggs have been CAT scanned but even then the embryonic bones may be hard to ID even if visible at all. Sorta like when my dachshund ate an entire squirrel. I asked to see the x-ray and there was maybe only one bone and a few teeth that were obvious in the tangled knot of his stomach. Still don't understand why I like that breed.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
siteseer Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Saltasaurus belongs within a subgroup of sauropods called titanosaurs. Someone might have misunderstood that to mean that was the genus. I have also read that Titanosaurus is probably not a valid name. The various named species have been reconsidered to belong to other genera or are based on material too fragmentary to be identified to genus. Recently I purchased a "Titanosaurus" egg shell from Patagonia, Argentina. I immediately realized how similar it looked to my Saltasaurus egg shell, and then I read that the "Titanosaurus" is a dubious genus and may not actually be a specific species of dinosaur. To top it off, my Saltasaurus egg shell is from Patagonia, Argentina as well, and a google search showed mine was consistent with those that were being sold online. Question is, do I have an actual "Titanosaurus" egg shell, or is it merely a mis-labeled Saltasaurus egg shell? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trilobiteruss Posted September 4, 2012 Share Posted September 4, 2012 Essentially Titanosaurs are a group of sauropods that are found in the Cretaceous, have armor on their back and so forth, of which Saltasaurus is a part as siteseer just mentioned Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Andy- Posted September 7, 2012 Author Share Posted September 7, 2012 Thank you for the answers! Whoever sold me the egg shells though knows his stuff, so I will trust him to know that he did sell me separate species as Titanosaurus and Saltasaurus. Somewhat related...does anyone know if 1) Patagonia is part of Argentina, or is a separate area that is between Argentina and Chile 2) Is Patagonia part of the Lecho Formation? Looking forward to meeting my fellow Singaporean collectors! Do PM me if you are a Singaporean, or an overseas fossil-collector coming here for a holiday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgrilusHunter Posted September 7, 2012 Share Posted September 7, 2012 Wiki link "They ... savoured the strange warm glow of being much more ignorant than ordinary people, who were only ignorant of ordinary things." -- Terry Pratchett Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Andy- Posted September 8, 2012 Author Share Posted September 8, 2012 (edited) Wiki link Thank you, I 've seen the wiki. But it would be nicer to hear from someone who's actually been there, or live there, rather than a website. And I can't get my "Lecho Formation" answer if its in Patagonia from wiki either. Edited September 8, 2012 by -Andy- Looking forward to meeting my fellow Singaporean collectors! Do PM me if you are a Singaporean, or an overseas fossil-collector coming here for a holiday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rockwood Posted September 29, 2012 Share Posted September 29, 2012 There's a good chance it is Titanosaurus shell, and was quite likely taken illegally. See the book Walking on Eggs by Louis M. Chiappe and Lowell Dingus. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-Andy- Posted September 29, 2012 Author Share Posted September 29, 2012 There's a good chance it is Titanosaurus shell, and was quite likely taken illegally. See the book Walking on Eggs by Louis M. Chiappe and Lowell Dingus. That's interesting. I didn't know egg shells were legally protected too. Looking forward to meeting my fellow Singaporean collectors! Do PM me if you are a Singaporean, or an overseas fossil-collector coming here for a holiday! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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