Hi All -
Pardons if this duplicates anything already posted today (I only see
the archives a day late):
Buffetaut, E. 2005. A new sauropod dinosaur with prosauropod-like teeth
from the Middle Jurassic of Madagascar. Bulletin de la Société Geologique
de France 176(5):467-473.
ABSTRACT: A dentary bone containing several teeth, from the Middle
Jurassic (Bathonian) of northwestern Madagascar is described as the type
of a new sauropod dinosaur taxon, _Archaeodontosaurus descouensi_, n.g.,
n.sp. This taxon is characterised by the unusual combination of a dentary
with a deep anterior part, as in advanced sauropods, and teeth with large
serrations and a convex lingual side, which resemble the teeth of
prosauropods. A more common pattern in early sauropods is the combination
of a low, prosauropod-like dentary and spoon-shaped, sauropod-like teeth.
Although the condition in _Archaeodontosaurus descouensi_ strongly
suggests that basal sauropods had prosauropod-like teeth, what is known of
the jaw and dentition in various early and middle Jurassic sauropods
indicates mosaic evolution along different paths during the early
diversification of the group. _Archaeodontosaurus descouensi_ differs from
Jurassic sauropod material from Madagascar, previously described as
_Bothriospondylus_ and _Lapparentosaurus_, which needs revision. It
appears that at least two distinct sauropods, with different tooth
morphologies, are present in the Middle Jurassic of Madagascar.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Jerry D. Harris
Director of Paleontology
Dixie State College
Science Building
225 South 700 East
St. George, UT 84770 USA
Phone: (435) 652-7758
Fax: (435) 656-4022
E-mail: jharris@dixie.edu
and dinogami@gmail.com
http://cactus.dixie.edu/jharris/
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