Lutungutali

Lutungutali is known from parts of its pelvis and tail vertebrae, found in the Ntawere Formation of Zambia.1

Its name means 'high hip' because the blade of its ilium (hip bone) is taller than the part that forms the hip socket.1

Lutungutali and Asilisaurus from Tanzania are the two oldest known members of Avemetatarsalia, the line of archosaurs that includes birds.1

It lived during the Middle Triassic, about 247 to 227 million years ago, when Zambia was part of the supercontinent Pangaea.2

Scientists think Lutungutali was a ground-dwelling herbivore that moved actively on land.4

The only known fossil of Lutungutali is a partial skeleton including hip bones and tail vertebrae, collected in 2009.1