Echinodon
Lower jaw and teeth of Echinodon. Detail of a lithograph from 1860
- Echinodon becklesii
Echinodon ( " spike tooth" ) is a genus of bird Beck dinosaur ( Ornithischia ), the exact systematic position is not finally resolved. Echinodon was described in 1861 by Richard Owen, who, however, for which held the remains of a lizard.
Echinodon lived at the turn of the Upper Jurassic to Lower Cretaceous ( Tithonian to Berriasian ) in England. The bipedal dinosaur reached a length of approximately 60 centimeters. Previously isolated skull fragments were found by three individuals, including parts of the jaw and teeth. Unlike most other ornithischians Echinodon had one or two teeth in the upper jaw, which is similar to canines ( caniniform ) were formed.
Over time was Echinodon different Dinosauriertaxa assigned. He was described as Fabrosaurier and as original ornithischians. On the basis of the bones found near dermal bones he was also considered a representative of the original Thyreophoren (a group of armored ornithischians ), the elements, however, were later identified as osteoderms, which originated from the limbs of a tortoise. The Paul C. Sereno 1991 made classification of Echinodon as Heterodontosauride was controversial, but it was in 2002 - albeit for different reasons - from Norman and Barret confirmed in a joint work. If this proves true opinion, it would be considerably younger than the other representatives of this taxon.