Abstract

This research presents the first pliosaur remains from the Upper Jurassic of the Atacama Desert, in northern Chile. Two specimens recovered from Oxfordian levels, are represented by a fragmentary mandibular ramus and by an associated humerus and femur, respectively. Previous to this research, the Jurassic South American pliosaur records were restricted to Tithonian endemic taxa from the Neuquén Province, in Argentina. The studied material represents the first of Oxfordian age known in Gondwana, adding to the scarce pliosaur records of Oxfordian age known worldwide.