Titanosaurian teeth from the Upper Cretaceous of Lo Hueco (Cuenca, Spain)

The Upper Cretaceous fossil site of Lo Hueco (Cuenca, Spain) has yielded two morphotypes of sauropod teeth referable to Titanosauria. One (Lo Hueco morphotype A) is composed of robust spatulate crown teeth. These teeth exhibit the same morphology and microwear patterns in the apical facet as teeth described from the Massecaps site (Upper Cretaceous of southeastern France). The second morphotype (Lo Hueco morphotype B) comprises gracile spatulate teeth similar to those of the French titanosaur genus Atsinganosaurus. However, further analysis of skeletal and cranial elements from Lo Hueco and its association with the described dental morphotypes will be needed to establish the degree of proximity between the Iberian and French taxa. The presence of at least two more titanosaurian taxa in the Iberian Peninsula, besides the well-known species Lirainosaurus astibiae, corroborates the increase in the known diversity of the sauropod faunae from the Upper Cretaceous of the Ibero-Armorican Island suggested by previous studies on the biota of Lo Hueco. In addition, the microwear differences found in the apical wear facets of the two morphotypes could be explained as due to different diets. The absence of isolated pits and the orientational consistency of the scratches support the hypothesis of a non-selective diet on soft stems, as herbaceous plants, for the titanosaurs from Lo Hueco. However, the presence of a coarser pattern in morphotype B suggests a niche partition for both species. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.