Hortalotarsus (etymology uncertain; probably "tarsus of a young bird"? ) is a dubious genus of extinct sauropodomorph from the Early Jurassic (Sinemurian-aged) Clarens Formation of Eagle's Crag, South Africa.

Discovery and naming

The type species, Hortalotarsus skirtopodus was named by Harry Seeley in 1894, initially as a species of Thecodontosaurus. The holotype is AM 455, consisting today of only a tibia, fibula and phalanges, although more of the skeleton was initially present, including ribs, possible vertebrae, a possible ilium, a possible femur, a possible scapula and a possible humerus, which was discovered by William Horner Wallace on 11 July 1888 in Eagle's Crag, Barkly East. According to Robert Broom (1911), "Originally most of the skeleton was in the rock, and it was regarded by the farmers as the skeleton of a Bushman, but it is said to have been destroyed through fear that a Bushman skeleton in the rock might tend to weaken the religious belief of the rising generation." Seeley however, states that most of the skeleton was lost by a failed attempt to free it from the rock by using gunpowder. Some partial leg bones were salvaged.

Description

Hortalotarsus would have been similar to Massospondylus, reaching around 3 m long when fully grown.

Classification

Hortalotarsus was subsequently regarded as either a synonym of Massospondylus or a valid genus belonging to Anchisauridae. Galton and Cluver (1976) as well as Galton and Upchurch (2004), however, designated this genus a nomen dubium. Today, Hortalotarsus is classified as a member of the Massospondylidae.

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