Cervical vertebrae of Tharosaurus indicus. RWR-241-A, anterior cotyle in anterior view.
The team has named their new find Tharosaurus indicus. They note that dicraeosaurids, such as T. indicus, are all part of a larger group called diplodocoids, which all had long bodies and necks and spikes on the backs of their necks. T. indicus., the researchers note, has some slight differences from others in its group, such as a long depression on the side of its neck bones and neural spines that are believed to indicate it had uniquely facing spikes.
The research team suggest their find is likely just the first of many to come, and together such fossils hint at the possibility that the area where the fossil was found likely played an important role in the emergence of neosauropods—also long-necked, vegetation eating dinosaurs. They note that other fossils have been found in the area that also suggest the region played an evolutionary role in the development of many vertebrate groups.