Erketu
Erketu ellisoni
Erketu (meaning "Erketü tengri") is a genus of somphospondylan dinosaur that lived in Asia during the Late Cretaceous, roughly between 96 million and 89 million years ago. It is known from the Bayanshiree Formation of Mongolia, and its fossils were found between 2002 and 2003 during field expeditions. Erketu was first described in 2006 and later on in 2010 due to some cervicals that were left behind in the expedition. This genus represents the first sauropod described from the Bayanshiree Formation. The elongated cervical vertebrae indicate that it probably had the longest neck relative to its body size of any sauropod.
- Family
- Euhelopodidae
- Order
- Saurischia
- Period
- Cretaceous (112.0–100.0 Ma)
- Diet
- Herbivore
- Length
- 15.0 m
- Weight
- 10.0 t
- Type locality
- Bayan Shireh Formation, Mongolia
- Holotype
- IGM 100/1803
- PBDB
- txn:72376