A new titanosaurid based on fossilized fragments is unearthed from the Campanian of Brazil. The name given to the new genus and species is Maxakalisaurus topai and derives from an Indian tribe, Maxakali, which lives in the area. Topa is a divinity that the tribe worships. It is a custom in Brazil to give native Indian names to paleontological finds. M. topai had a large body, long tail and neck with a relatively small head and the estimated weight is about nine tons and a length of approximately 13 meter. Because some of the bones found had the marks of teeth on them the scientists believe that the specimen was devoured by carnivorous dinosaurs after its death. The bones were found during excavations between 1998 and 2002 next to a highway in a place called Serra da Boa Vista a mountain near the city of Prata, some 440 miles northwest of Rio de Janeiro, in central-southern Minas Gerais state.

A scientific description of the dinosaur, was published on Aug. 11 in Brazilian National Museum\\\\\\\'s bulletin.

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