is a geological formation dating to roughly 210 to 190 million years ago and covering the
stages. The Elliot Formation is found in
. It consists mainly of
.
An unnamed ornithischian genus has been reported from the Upper Elliot Formation. Geographically it was located in the
, Lesotho. Ornithischian tracks have been reported from the Upper Elliot Formation. Geographically they were located in
, and Mohales Hoek District, Lesotho. Possible indeterminate ornithischian remains have been reported from the Lower and Upper Elliot Formation of
Ornithischian dinosaurDinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s of the Elliot Formation |
| Genus |
Species |
Location |
Stratigraphic position |
Material |
Notes |
Images |
AbrictosaurusAbrictosaurus is a genus of heterodontosaurid dinosaur from the Early Jurassic Period of what is now southern Africa. It was a small bipedal herbivore or omnivore, approximately 1.2 meters long, and weighing less than 45 kilograms .This dinosaur is known from the fossil remains of only...
|
A. consors |
- Qacha's Nek District
Qacha's Nek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,349 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 71,876. Qacha's Nek is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
"[Two] skulls, [one] associated with fragmentary skeleton; material consisting of either male and female or adult and juvenile." |
The Qacha's Nek DistrictQacha's Nek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,349 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 71,876. Qacha's Nek is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
remains were once considered Lycorhinus consors. |
|
FabrosaurusFabrosaurus ) was a genus of herbivorous dinosaur which lived during the Early Jurassic . As the only fossil known of it is a partial jawbone with three teeth, Fabrosaurus is a nomen dubium and may in fact be the same as Lesothosaurus.Fabrosaurus was around 1 meter long...
|
F. australis |
- Mafeteng district
Mafeteng is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,119 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 193,682. Mafeteng is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Upper Elliot |
"Fragmentary dentary with teeth." |
Its remains are now considered indeterminate ornithischian. |
HeterodontosaurusHeterodontosaurus is a genus of small herbivorous dinosaur with prominent canine teeth which lived in the Early Jurassic of South Africa. It was similar to a hypsilophodont in shape, and ate plants, despite its canines.Heterodontosaurus is currently known from specimens of the SAFM from South...
|
H. tucki |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
|
|
Indeterminate |
- Quthing District
Quthing is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,916 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 120,502. Quthing, also known as Moyeni, is the capital of the district or camptown, and the only town in the district...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
|
Lanasaurus |
L. scalpridens |
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Now regarded as a junior synonym of LycorhinusLycorhinus is a genus of heterodontosaurid ornithischian dinosaur hailing from the Early Jurassic strata of the Elliot Formation located in the Cape Province, South Africa....
. |
LesothosaurusLesothosaurus is an herbivorous ornithischian dinosaur. It was named by paleontologist Peter Galton in 1978, the name meaning "lizard from Lesotho". The genus is monotypic, having only one valid species, Lesothosaurus diagnosticus, within the genus....
|
L. diagnosticus |
- Mafeteng district
Mafeteng is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,119 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 193,682. Mafeteng is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Upper Elliot |
"At least [four] skulls and associated skeletal material." |
|
LycorhinusLycorhinus is a genus of heterodontosaurid ornithischian dinosaur hailing from the Early Jurassic strata of the Elliot Formation located in the Cape Province, South Africa....
|
L. angustidens |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
"Isolated dentary maxillae." |
|
L. consors |
- Qacha's Nek District
Qacha's Nek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,349 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 71,876. Qacha's Nek is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Split off as the type species of the new genus AbrictosaurusAbrictosaurus is a genus of heterodontosaurid dinosaur from the Early Jurassic Period of what is now southern Africa. It was a small bipedal herbivore or omnivore, approximately 1.2 meters long, and weighing less than 45 kilograms .This dinosaur is known from the fossil remains of only...
. |
Prosauropod tracks have been found in the Lower and Upper Elliot Formation. Geographically, these finds have been located in
, Lesotho. Possible prosauropod tracks have been located in the Lower Elliot Formation. Geographically these were located in
Sauropodomorph dinosaurDinosaurs are a diverse group of animals of the clade and superorder Dinosauria. They were the dominant terrestrial vertebrates for over 160 million years, from the late Triassic period until the end of the Cretaceous , when the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event led to the extinction of...
s of the Elliot Formation |
| Genus |
Species |
Location |
Stratigraphic position |
Material |
Notes |
Images |
AardonyxAardonyx is a genus of prosauropod dinosaur. It is known from the type species Aardonyx celestae found from the Lower Jurassic Elliot Formation of South Africa. A. celestae was named after Celeste Yates, who prepared much of the first known fossil material of the species...
|
A. celestae |
|
|
|
|
|
Aetonyx |
A. palustris |
|
Upper Elliot |
"Cervicals, caudals, partial fore- and hindlimb." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
AntetonitrusAntetonitrus is the oldest known genus of sauropod dinosaur, living during the Late Triassic Period of southern Africa. It was a quadrupedal herbivore, like many of its later relatives, although it was far smaller than some of them...
|
A. ingenipes |
|
Lower Elliot |
|
|
BlikanasaurusBlikanasaurus was a genus of sauropodomorph dinosaur found in Lower Elliot Formation rocks from the Late Triassic in what is now South Africa's Cape Province. Known from a left lower limb only, it has been variously classified as a prosauropod or basal sauropod...
|
B. cromptoni |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Lower Elliot |
"Associated left tibia, fibula, tarsus, [and] pes." |
|
Dromicosaurus |
D. gracilis |
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
EucnemesaurusEucnemesaurus is a basal sauropodomorph dinosaur genus usually considered to be a synonym of Euskelosaurus. Recent study by Yates , however, indicates that it is valid and the same animal as putative "giant herrerasaurid" Aliwalia....
|
E. fortis |
|
Lower Elliot |
"Fragmentary skeleton." |
|
EuskelosaurusEuskelosaurus was a semi-bipedal dinosaur from the Late Triassic. It was a prosauropod that lived in the Late Triassic Period, in present-day South Africa, Lesotho, and Zimbabwe. It was first described by Thomas Henry Huxley in 1866 as Euskelesaurus brownii based on holotype BMNH R1625, limb and...
|
E. africanus |
|
Lower Elliot |
"Vertebrae, ischia, incomplete ilia, tibiae and femora." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
E. browni |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Lower Elliot |
|
|
Indeterminate |
- Mohale's Hoek District
Mohale's Hoek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 3,530 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 174,924. Mohale's Hoek is the capital city or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Lower Elliot |
|
|
GryponyxGryponyx is an extinct genus of massopod sauropodomorph known from southern Free State, central South Africa.-Description:...
|
G. africanus |
|
Upper Elliot |
"Vertebrae, both manus, pelvis and hindlimbs." |
A valid sauropodomorph genus and species. |
G. taylori |
|
Upper Elliot |
"Sacrals, pelvic girdle." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
Indeterminate |
- Mohale's Hoek District
Mohale's Hoek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 3,530 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 174,924. Mohale's Hoek is the capital city or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
|
Hortalotarsus |
H. skirtopodus |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
IgnavusaurusIgnavusaurus is a genus of basal sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived during the Early Jurassic in what is now present-day Lesotho. Its fossils were found in the upper Elliot Formation which is probably Hettangian in age. It was described on the basis of a partial, well preserved articulated skeleton...
|
I. rachelis |
|
|
|
|
Leptospondylus |
L. capensis |
|
Upper Elliot |
"Caudals." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
MassospondylusMassospondylus and ) is a genus of prosauropod dinosaur from the early Jurassic Period . It was described by Sir Richard Owen in 1854 from remains found in South Africa, and is thus one of the first dinosaurs to have been named...
|
M. browni |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
"Cervicals, dorsal, caudals, pedal elements." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
M. carinatus |
- Leribe District
Leribè is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,828 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 298,352. Hlotse is the capital or camptown of the district. The district has one additional town, namely Maputsoe and Matukeng.-Geography:...
- Quthing District
Quthing is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,916 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 120,502. Quthing, also known as Moyeni, is the capital of the district or camptown, and the only town in the district...
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
- Free State Province
|
Upper Elliot |
|
- Leribe remains "(=Gryponyx sp., Aetonyx sp.)"; Quthing remains "(including Gryponyx taylori)"
|
M. harriesi |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Upper Elliot |
"Forelimb." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
M. schwarzi |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
Indeterminate |
- Mafeteng District
Mafeteng is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,119 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 193,682. Mafeteng is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
- Qacha's Nek District
Qacha's Nek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,349 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 71,876. Qacha's Nek is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Upper Elliot
Lower Elliot |
|
|
MelanorosaurusMelanorosaurus , is a genus of basal sauropodomorph dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period. A herbivore from South Africa, it had a large body and sturdy limbs, suggesting it moved about on all fours...
|
M. readi |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Lower Elliot |
"[Three] partial skeletons, adult." |
|
M. thabanensis |
- Mafeteng District
Mafeteng is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,119 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 193,682. Mafeteng is the capital or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Upper Elliot |
"Femur, adult." |
|
Indeterminate |
- Leribe District
Leribè is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,828 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 298,352. Hlotse is the capital or camptown of the district. The district has one additional town, namely Maputsoe and Matukeng.-Geography:...
- Maseru District
Maseru is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 4,279 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 429,823. Maseru is also the name of the district's capital, and is the only city in the district. Additionally it is the capital of the country. It is the largest urban area in the country,...
- Mohale's Hoek District
Mohale's Hoek is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 3,530 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 174,924. Mohale's Hoek is the capital city or camptown, and only town in the district.-Geography:...
|
Lower Elliot |
|
|
Orinosaurus |
O. capensis |
|
Lower Elliot |
"Proximal tibia." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
Pachyspondylus |
P. orpenii |
|
Upper Elliot |
"Fragmentary vertebrae." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
PlateosaurusPlateosaurus is a genus of plateosaurid dinosaur that lived during the Late Triassic period, around 216 to 199 million years ago, in what is now Central and Northern Europe. Plateosaurus is a basal sauropodomorph dinosaur, a so-called "prosauropod"...
|
P. cullingworthi |
|
Lower Elliot |
"Partial skeleton." |
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
P. stormbergensis |
|
Lower Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
ThecodontosaurusThecodontosaurus is a genus of herbivorous basal sauropodomorph dinosaur which lived during the late Triassic period ....
|
T. browni |
- Quthing District
Quthing is a district of Lesotho. It has an area of 2,916 km² and a population in 2006 of approximately 120,502. Quthing, also known as Moyeni, is the capital of the district or camptown, and the only town in the district...
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
T. minor |
- Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequently the Republic of South Africa...
|
Upper Elliot |
|
Elliot material formerly referred to this taxon was later concluded to be indeterminate prosauropod remains. |
Theropod tracks are stratigraphically located in both the Lower and Upper Elliot Formation. Geographically, they are located in the