A chance discovery in the desert
In 2010, a farm worker named Aurelio Hernández was looking for lost sheep on the La Flecha ranch in the desert of Chubut Province when he spotted the tip of a massive bone protruding from a rock. The bone was a femur measuring 2.4 meters (7.9 feet) long—the largest ever found. The Mayo family, owners of the ranch, contacted paleontologists from the Egidio Feruglio Paleontology Museum (MEF) in Trelew.
Excavations led by José Luis Carballido and Diego Pol began in 2013. Over several years, their team unearthed a spectacular fossil discovery: more than 150 bones from at least six different individuals. The fossils were remarkably well-preserved and represented one of the most complete titanosaur discoveries ever made. The geological layer containing the bones, part of the Cerro Barcino Formation, dates to approximately 101.6 million years ago, during the Late Cretaceous period. Analysis of the site showed that the animals had died there on at least three separate occasions, their carcasses subsequently buried by the sediment of overflowing rivers.
Naming a giant
The new species was formally named Patagotitan mayorum in 2017. The name honors the region of its discovery, Patagonia, combined with the Greek word "Titan" for its immense size. The species name, mayorum, honors the Mayo family for their hospitality and cooperation during the extensive excavation process.
Patagotitan mayorum was a long-necked, plant-eating sauropod belonging to a group called Titanosauria. Based on the discovered fossils, scientists estimate the dinosaur reached a length of about 37 meters (122 feet) and weighed between 57 and 69 metric tons (63 to 76 tons). This makes it a large land animal known to have ever existed. Despite their colossal weight, analysis of the individuals showed that the young adults had not yet finished growing. The fossils from La Flecha ranch provided an unprecedented amount of data, allowing for a more accurate and complete reconstruction than for other giant sauropods like Argentinosaurus, which is known from more fragmentary remains.