RE: Specimen not in collection - usable?

["Thomas R. Holtz, Jr." <tholtz@umd.edu>]

> From: owner-DINOSAUR@usc.edu [mailto:owner-DINOSAUR@usc.edu] 
> On Behalf Of Pedro Andrade
>
> Andrew Farke said: "This happens relatively frequently in 
> paleoichnology - in this case, a cast is often made of the 
> footprint and deposited in a museum."
> 
> I see, but what is the type specimen? I'd suppose it's the 
> original fossil that remained in the field, but what happens 
> when erosion destroys it?

There is a category of type specimen called "plastotype": a cast of the
original holotype. For example, the holotype of Poekilopleuron was
destroyed, but its plastotype remains as the new type specimen.

Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
Email: tholtz@umd.edu   Phone: 301-405-4084
Office: Centreville 1216                        
Senior Lecturer, Vertebrate Paleontology
Dept. of Geology, University of Maryland
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~tholtz/
Fax: 301-314-9661               

Faculty Director, Earth, Life & Time Program, College Park Scholars
http://www.geol.umd.edu/~jmerck/eltsite/
Fax: 301-405-0796

Mailing Address:        Thomas R. Holtz, Jr.
                        Department of Geology
                        Building 237, Room 1117
                        University of Maryland
                        College Park, MD 20742 USA