Vulcanodon, in a family called Vulcanodontidae, although this family was declared invalid by Paul Upchurch in 1995 because it was recognized as polyphyletic. Upchurch erected a clade named Eusauropoda that includes all known sauropods except some very basal forms. While Vulcanodon was classified outside the Eusauropoda, Barapasaurus was classified inside it, which means that Barapasaurus is more derived than Vulcanodon. Although Upchurch's classification was accepted by most paleontologists, a recent study from Bandyopadhyay and colleagues came to a contrary conclusion: these paleontologists stated that Barapasaurus was in fact more basal than Vulcanodon and removed it from Eusauropoda. Discovery and naming All known fossils come from a single locality in the vicinity of the village of Pochampally Pin code 442504, bordering Telangana state (Pochampally Sironcha Taluka, Gadchiroli District, Vidarbha, Maharastra, in central India. India). The first bones were discovered in 1958, but most specimens were unearthed in 1960 and 1961. In 1975, the finds were described scientifically by paleontologist Sohan Lal Jain and colleagues. In 2010, a more detailed osteological description was published by Bandyopadhyay and colleagues. The material is archived in the paleontological collection of the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), while a majority of the bones are part of a mount at the Geological Museum of the ISI. Habitat Barapasaurus comes from clay and sandstone that belongs to the lower part of the Kota Formation. Other vertebrates of this part include another early sauropod, Kotasaurus, as well as the mammals Kotatherium, Indotherium and Indozostrodon. The upper part of the Kota Formation additionally contained a pterosaur (Campylognathoides), a turtle, two rhynchocephalians, a lepidosaur and some mammals. Taphonomy The approximately 300 bones were found together with large trunks of trees scattered over an area of 276 square meters. Although one of the specimens was found partly articulated, most bones were found disarticulated. Because there are six left femora, the total number of individuals is at least six. Bandyopadhyay and colleagues (2002, 2010) interpret this assemblage as a herd that died due to a catastrophic event, likely a flood. This flood could have unearthed the trees and transported both trees and Barapasaurus a distance before they began to decompose. After decomposition progressed, the bones began to disarticulate. The disarticulated skull bones were removed by the water stream because they were light, leaving only the heavy postcranial bones at the site, which would explain why no skull bones were found. References External links Barapasaurus