Nodocephalosaurus

Nodocephalosaurus
Temporal occurrence
Upper Cretaceous (late Campanium to early Maastrichtian )
76.4 to 69.9 million years
Locations
North America
Systematics
Pelvic dinosaur (Ornithischia) Thyreophora Eurypoda Ankylosaurs (ankylosauria) Ankylosauridae Nodocephalosaurus
Scientific name
Nodocephalosaurus
Sullivan , 1999
Art
N. kirtlandensis Sullivan, 1999

Nodocephalosaurus is a genus of pelvic dinosaurs from the group of Ankylosauria knownonly from sparse fossil finds . She lived in the Upper Cretaceous in North America.

features

So far, only parts of the skull of Nodocephalosaurus that resemble those of Asian ankylosaurs such as Saichania and Tarchia are known. The top of the skull was armored with round bone plates, and there were two small bony horns at the back of the head. The cheeks also showed a bony outgrowth. In addition, the air ducts found in some ankylosaurs were found inside the skull. Nothing is known about the rest of the body structure, presumably Nodocephalosaurus, like all ankylosaurs, was a quadruped herbivore whose trunk was covered with armor made of bone plates.

Discovery and systematics

Nodocephalosaurus fossil finds were discovered in the Lower Kirtland Formation in the US state of New Mexico and first described in 1999 . The name means "Knotenkopfechse", type species and the only known species is N. kirtlandensis . The finds are dated in the Upper Cretaceous (late Campanian to early Maastrichtian ) to an age of about 76 to 69 million years.

Nodocephalosaurus is classified within the Ankylosauridae in the group of Ankylosaurinae, the younger, more highly developed representatives. Due to the similarities with Tarchia and Saichania , it is listed in some classifications in a common clade with these two genera. Other sources such as Vickaryous et al. (2004) see the fossils found as too sparse for a precise classification and list them under “Ankylosaurinae incertae sedis ”.

literature

• Matthew K. Vickaryous, Teresa Maryańska , David B. Weishampel : Ankylosauria. In: David B. Weishampel, Peter Dodson , Halszka Osmólska (eds.): The Dinosauria . 2nd edition. University of California Press, Berkeley CA et al. 2004, ISBN 0-520-24209-2 , pp. 363-392.

Individual evidence

1. ^ Gregory S. Paul : The Princeton Field Guide To Dinosaurs. Princeton University Press, Princeton NJ et al. 2010, ISBN 978-0-691-13720-9 , pp. 232-233, online .