A sauropodomorph dinosaur from the ?Early Jurassic of Lusitu, Zambia

Abstract

Dinosaur material has been reported from Zambia but remains undescribed. The first record, from the upper Luangwa Valley, was mistakenly identified and pertains instead to indeterminate dicynodonts. The only other report on Zambian dinosaur material concerns associated partial hind limb and vertebral material collected from an Upper Karoo sandstone in the vicinity of Lusitu. We provide a description of this specimen, the first definitive dinosaur to be reported from Zambia, and identify it as an indeterminate basal sauropodomorph. Unfortunately, the precise age of the specimen remains unknown, although an Early Jurassic age seems likely.