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{{Short description|Sauropod dinosaur genus from Early Jurassic India}}
{{Use Indian English|date=January 2024}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2024}}
{{speciesbox
| name = ''Barapasaurus''
| fossil_range = [[Sinemurian]]-[[Pliensbachian]], {{Fossil range|196|190|latest=Middle Jurassic}}
| image = Barapasaurus DB.jpg
| image_caption = Life restoration
| display_parents = 2
| genus = Barapasaurus
| parent_authority = [[Sohan Lal Jain|Jain]] ''et al.'', [[1975 in paleontology|1975]]
| species = tagorei
| authority = Jain ''et al'', 1975
}}

'''''Barapasaurus''''' ({{IPAc-en|b|ə|ˌ|r|ɑː|p|ə|ˈ|s|ɔː|r|ə|s}} {{respell|bə|RAH|pə|SOR|əs}}) is a [[genus]] of [[Basal (phylogenetics)|basal]] [[sauropod]] [[dinosaur]] from [[Jurassic]] rocks of [[India]]. The only species is ''B. tagorei''. ''Barapasaurus'' comes from the lower part of the [[Kota Formation]], which is of [[Early Jurassic|Early]] to [[Middle Jurassic]] in age. It is therefore one of the earliest known sauropods. ''Barapasaurus'' is known from approximately 300 bones from at least six individuals, so that the skeleton is almost completely known except for the anterior [[cervical vertebrae]] and the [[skull]]. This makes ''Barapasaurus'' one of the most completely known sauropods from the Early Jurassic.

== Discovery and naming ==
All known fossils come from a single locality in the vicinity of the village of [[Pochampally]] (Pin Code: 442504), bordering Telangana (Pochampally [[Sironcha Taluka, Gadchiroli District]], Vidarbha, [[Maharastra]], in central [[India]]).<ref name="jain 1975"/> The first bones were discovered in 1958, but most specimens were unearthed in 1960 and 1961.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/> In 1975, the finds were described scientifically by palaeontologist [[Sohan Lal Jain]] and colleagues.<ref name="jain 1975"/> In 2010, a more detailed [[Osteology|osteological]] description was published by Bandyopadhyay and colleagues.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/> The material is archived in the palaeontological collection of the [[Indian Statistical Institute]] (ISI), while a majority of the bones are part of a mount at the Geological Museum of the ISI.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

=== Etymology ===
The name ''Barapasaurus'' ("big-legged lizard") is derived from ''bara'' meaning 'big' and ''pa'' meaning 'leg' in several Indian languages including Bengali; the [[Ancient Greek|Greek]] word ''sauros'' means '[[lizard]]'.<ref name="jain 1975"/> This name was used as a ''[[nomen nudum]]'' since a femur measuring over 1.7 m was unearthed at 1961.<ref name="jain 1975"/> The [[specific name (zoology)|specific name]] ''tagorei'' means 'Tagore's', which honours [[Bengalis|Bengali]] poet, writer, painter, and musician [[Rabindranath Tagore]]. The first year of fieldwork was carried out in the [[centenary]] year of Tagore's birth.<ref name="jain 1975"/>

==Fossil record==
[[File:Barapasaurus_skeletal_mount.png|thumb|250px|Reconstructed skeletal mount of ''Barapasaurus tagorei'', based on Jain (1979)<ref name="jain 1979"/>]]
''Barapasaurus tagorei'' is known from a large [[bone bed]] found in the Lower [[Kota Formation]], containing approximately 300 bones from at least six individuals of various ages. No remains of the skull, other than teeth, have been found.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/> The age of this fossil site is disputed, because no volcanic rocks whose age can be determined by [[radiometric dating]] are associated with the Kota Formation and its age can only be estimated by [[biostratigraphic]] comparisons to other rock layers, which is made difficult by the lack of reliable [[index fossils]] in the formation. The age has generally been interpreted as [[Early Jurassic]], with the Lower Kota Formation in particular dating to the [[Sinemurian]] to [[Pliensbachian]], roughly 184–200 million years ago. However, some studies have argued that the Kota Formation dates to the [[Middle Jurassic]] or even later.<ref name="parmar 2013"/><ref name="pol 2022"/>

=== Taphonomy ===
The approximately 300 bones were found together with large trunks of trees scattered over an area of 276 square meters. Although one of the specimens was found partly articulated, most bones were found disarticulated. Because there are six left femora, the total number of individuals is at least six.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

Bandyopadhyay and colleagues (2002, 2010) interpret this assemblage as a herd that died due to a catastrophic event, likely a [[flood]]. This flood could have unearthed the trees and transported both trees and ''Barapasaurus'' a distance before they began to [[decompose]]. After decomposition progressed, the bones began to disarticulate. The disarticulated skull bones were removed by the water stream because they were light, leaving only the heavy postcranial bones at the site, which would explain why no skull bones were found.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

== Description ==
[[File:Barapasaurus scale diagram.png|thumb|left|Size comparison of ''Barapasaurus tagorei'']]
Although a very early and unspecialised sauropod, ''Barapasaurus'' shows the building plan typical for later, more derived sauropods: the cervical vertebrae were elongated, resulting in a long neck. The trunk was short and holds columnar limbs which indicate an [[obligate]] [[Quadrupedalism|quadrupedal]] posture.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/><ref name="jain 1979"/> Even the size, which is estimated at {{convert|12 to 14|m|ft}} long and {{convert|7|t|ST}} in weight,<ref name="glut 1997"/><ref>{{Cite book |last=Paul |first=Gregory S. |author-link=Gregory S. Paul |title=The Princeton Field Guide To Dinosaurs |publisher=Princeton University Press |year=2010 |isbn=9780691137209 |location=New Jersey |pages=173}}</ref> is comparable with that of later sauropods.<ref name="jain 1979"/>

The [[vertebral column]] already shows many traits that are typical for later sauropods which allowed them to attain great body sizes, although in later sauropods these traits are much more developed. The central and neural spines show early hints of hollowing as a weight-saving measure. The [[dorsal vertebrae]] are stabilised with [[hyposphene-hypantrum articulation]]s, accessory projections that link the vertebrae with each other. The [[sacrum]] is strengthened through an additional fourth sacral vertebra.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

From the skull, only three whole [[Tooth|teeth]] and three crowns are known. The largest-known tooth is {{convert|5.8|cm|in}} in height. Like that of later sauropods, the teeth are spoon shaped and show wrinkled [[Tooth enamel|enamel]]. A basal trait is the coarse serration.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

== Classification ==
{|border = "0" style = "float:right;"
|-
|
|{{center|'''[[Cladistics#Cladograms|Cladogram]] of basal Sauropoda'''}}
|-
|
{{Cladogram|caption=Bandyopadhyay 2010<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>
|clades={{clade| style=font-size:80%;line-height:80%
|label1=[[Sauropoda]]
|1={{clade
|1=''[[Jingshanosaurus]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1=''[[Antetonitrus]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1=''[[Chinshakiangosaurus]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1=''[[Kotasaurus]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1='''''Barapasaurus'''''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1=''[[Vulcanodon]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|label1=[[Eusauropoda]]
|1={{clade
|1=''[[Shunosaurus]]''
|label2=
|2={{clade
|1=''[[Camarasaurus]]''
|2=''[[Omeisaurus]]''
}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}
|}

The relationships of this genus within the Sauropoda are debated. When first described in 1975, it was not attributed to one specific group at all, although the presence of many basal, [[prosauropod]]-like features was noted.<ref name="jain 1975"/> Since 1984, ''Barapasaurus'' was united with another early sauropod, ''[[Vulcanodon]]'', in a family called [[Vulcanodontidae]], although this [[Family (biology)|family]] was declared invalid by [[Paul Upchurch]] in 1995 because it was recognised as [[polyphyletic]]. Upchurch erected a [[clade]] named [[Eusauropoda]] that includes all known sauropods except some very basal forms. While ''Vulcanodon'' was classified outside the Eusauropoda, ''Barapasaurus'' was classified inside it, which means that ''Barapasaurus'' is more derived than ''Vulcanodon''.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/><ref name="upchurch 1995"/> Although Upchurch's classification was accepted by most palaeontologists, a recent study from Bandyopadhyay and colleagues came to a contrary conclusion: these palaeontologists stated that ''Barapasaurus'' was in fact more basal than ''Vulcanodon'' and removed it from Eusauropoda.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

== Habitat ==
''Barapasaurus'' comes from clay and [[sandstone]] that belongs to the lower part of the [[Kota Formation]]. Other vertebrates of this part include another early sauropod, ''[[Kotasaurus]]'', as well as the [[mammal]]s ''[[Kotatherium]]'', ''[[Indotherium]]'' and ''[[Indozostrodon]]''. The upper part of the Kota Formation additionally contained a [[pterosaur]] (''[[Campylognathoides]]''), a [[turtle]], two [[rhynchocephalia]]ns, a [[lepidosaur]] and some mammals.<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010"/>

== References ==
<references>
<ref name="jain 1975">
{{Cite journal |last=Jain |first=S. L. |author-link=Sohan Lal Jain |author2=T. S. Kutty |author3=T. Roy-Chowdhury |author4=S. Chatterjee |date=18 February 1975 |title=The Sauropod Dinosaur from the Lower Jurassic Kota Formation of India |url=http://rspb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/188/1091/221 |journal=[[Proceedings of the Royal Society B]] |volume=188 |issue=1091 |pages=221–228 |bibcode=1975RSPSB.188..221J |doi=10.1098/rspb.1975.0014 |issn=1471-2954 |s2cid=84957608 |url-access=subscription |access-date=13 October 2012}}
</ref>
<ref name="bandyopadhyay 2010">
{{Cite journal |last1=Bandyopadhyay |first1=Saswati |last2=Gillette |first2=David D. |last3=Ray |first3=Sanghamitra |last4=Sengupta |first4=Dhurjati P. |year=2010 |title=Osteology of Barapasaurus tagorei (Dinosauria: Sauropoda) from the Early Jurassic of India |journal=Palaeontology |volume=53 |issue=3 |pages=533–569 |bibcode=2010Palgy..53..533B |doi=10.1111/j.1475-4983.2010.00933.x |issn=1475-4983 |doi-access=free}}
</ref>
<ref name="jain 1979">
{{Cite conference |last1=Jain |first1=S. L. |author-link=Sohan Lal Jain |last2=T. S. Kutty |last3=T. Roy-Chowdhury |last4=S. Chatterjee |year=1979 |title=Some characteristics of Barapasaurus tagorei, a sauropod dinosaur from the Lower Jurassic of Deccan, India |conference= |volume=1 |pages=204–216 |book-title=Proceedings of the IV International Gondwana Symposium, Calcutta}}
</ref>
<ref name="glut 1997">
{{Cite book |last=Glut |first=Donald F. |author-link=Donald F. Glut |url=https://archive.org/details/dinosaursmostcom00holt |title=Dinosaurs, the encyclopedia |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc. Publishers |year=1997 |isbn=978-0-375-82419-7 |url-access=registration}}
</ref>
<ref name="parmar 2013">{{Cite journal |last1=Parmar |first1=Varun |last2=Prasad |first2=Guntupalli V. R. |last3=Kumar |first3=Deepak |date=2013 |title=The first multituberculate mammal from India |url=https://link.springer.com/10.1007/s00114-013-1047-0 |journal=Naturwissenschaften |volume=100 |issue=6 |pages=515–523 |bibcode=2013NW....100..515P |doi=10.1007/s00114-013-1047-0 |issn=0028-1042 |eissn=1432-1904 |pmid=23644519 |s2cid=253638698 |url-access=subscription}}</ref>
<ref name="pol 2022">{{cite book |last1=Pol |first1=D. |title=South American Sauropodomorph Dinosaurs. Record, Diversity and Evolution |last2=Gomez |first2=K. |last3=Holwerda |first3=F.H. |last4=Rauhut |first4=O.W.M. |last5=Carballido |first5=J.L. |publisher=Springer |year=2022 |isbn=978-3-030-95958-6 |editor-last=Otero |editor-first=A. |pages=131–163 |chapter=Sauropods from the Early Jurassic of South America and the Radiation of Eusauropoda |doi=10.1007/978-3-030-95959-3 |issn=2197-9596 |editor2-last=Carballido |editor2-first=J.L. |editor3-last=Pol |editor3-first=D. |s2cid=248368302}}</ref>
<ref name="upchurch 1995">
{{Cite journal |last=Upchurch |first=Paul |date=29 September 1995 |title=The Evolutionary History of Sauropod Dinosaurs |url=http://rstb.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/349/1330/365 |journal=Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences |volume=349 |issue=1330 |pages=365–390 |doi=10.1098/rstb.1995.0125 |issn=1471-2970|url-access=subscription }}
</ref>
</references>

==External links==
*[http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/herbivorousdinosaurs/p/barapasaurus.htm ''Barapasaurus''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150907193653/http://dinosaurs.about.com/od/herbivorousdinosaurs/p/barapasaurus.htm |date=7 September 2015 }}
*[https://animals.howstuffworks.com/dinosaurs/barapasaurus.htm ''Barapasaurus'']

{{Sauropodomorpha|B.}}
{{Taxonbar|from=Q131644}}

[[Category:Sauropoda]]
[[Category:Dinosaur genera]]
[[Category:Early Jurassic dinosaurs]]
[[Category:Fossil taxa described in 1975]]
[[Category:Dinosaurs of India]]

Barapasaurus - Revision history

Tradeunofabrics at 19:15, 19 April 2026