Early twentieth-century paleontological research of Freidrich von Huene: contributions to the knowledge of Late Cretaceous vertebrates of Central Brazil

Abstract

Friedrich von Huene’s important scientific research on tetrapod fossils from Central Brazil has received little attention, even though it represents a significant contribution to early studies of vertebrate paleontology in the country including the first discoveries of dinosaur fossils in Brazil. von Huene described five reptile taxa in two papers published in important German scientific journals and used these specimens to make paleogeographic inferences regarding the Cretaceous of the Southern Hemisphere. von Huene warrants recognition as the first specialist to describe in detail the fossil reptile fauna of Central Brazil, which was made possible only by his network of contacts with important and influential naturalists of the cities of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo.