Mongolosaurus

• Inner Mongolia, China (On Gong Formation)

• Mongolosaurus haplodon

Mongolosaurus is a genus of sauropod dinosaur from the little-known group of Titanosauria from the Lower Cretaceous of China. She was described in 1933 by paleontologist Charles Gilmore based on very fragmentary remains, in 1928 in Inner Mongolia (On Gong Formation) were found. The only way is Mongolosaurus haplodon. Some authors consider Mongolosaurus as a noun dubium ( a dubious name).

Fund and Features

The Fund ( holotype, specimen number AMNH 6710 ) is in the collection of the American Museum of Natural History and consists of a partial skull ( basioccipital ), incompletely preserved teeth as well as from the first three cervical vertebrae.

An examination of the findings by Wilson ( 2005) concludes that Mongolosaurus can be separated by at least three unique features ( autapomorphies ) to the anterior cervical vertebrae from other genres: first, the spinous processes of the vertebrae were greatly reduced. The Epipophysen were well developed. Furthermore, the spinoprezygapophyseal - and spinopostzygapophyseal lamina ( platy sections of the vertebral arches ) was oriented almost horizontally.

System

The systematic classification has long been controversial. Several authors classified it as a not einordbaren sauropod ( Sauropoda incertae sedis ), such as Gilmore (1933 ) and McIntosh (1990). Barrett and colleagues ( 2002) and Wilson ( 2002) classified the genus incertae sedis as Neosauropoda. Young ( 1958) and von Huene (1959 ) saw Mongolosaurus as a representative of the Diplodocidae. Still other studies gave no systematic classification of, but led the genus dubium as a noun, thus drew the validity of the genus in doubt. Recent studies by Wilson (2005) and Barrett and Wang (2007) classify as Mongolosaurus Nemegtosauriden within the Titanosauria. Thus, the braincase of Mongolosaurus shows a common feature ( synapomorphy ) of the Nemegtosauridae - laterally and ventrally widened basal tuberosities ( an extension below the occipital condyle ).

History of discovery, discovery and naming

The remains were discovered on June 3, 1928 by Dr. Walter Granger during an expedition of the American Museum of Natural History in Hu - Khung - Ulan. This and other materials from other expeditions was Charles Gilmore transferred for analysis, which in 1933 published a description of the finds. Gilmore saw the designation of a new genus and species in spite of the very few fossils justified because the teeth differ significantly from all previously known Sauropodenzähnen. The teeth show a maximum diameter of up to nine millimeters and were quite slim - Gilmore wrote that they were most likely to be compared with teeth of Diplodocus and Pleurocoelus. In the same publication Gilmore described the Ankylar Pinacosaurus.

Mongolosaurus ( " Mongolian lizard" ) is named after Inner Mongolia, where the fossils were discovered.

2003 Averianov and colleagues described a tooth fragment from the Murtoi Formation in eastern Russia ( Mogoito - reference, copy number ZIN PH 4 /13) also Mongolosaurus to as cf Mongolosaurus sp.