Deinodon

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Deinodon
Temporal range:
Ma
↓
Lectotype
tooth of D. horridus (specimen ASNP 9534)
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Clade: Dinosauria
Clade: Saurischia
Clade: Theropoda
Family: †Tyrannosauridae
Subfamily: †Deinodontinae
Cope, 1866 emend Brown, 1914 sensu Matthew and Brown, 1922
Genus: †Deinodon
Leidy, 1856
Type species
†Deinodon horridus
Leidy, 1856
Synonyms

Deinodon (Greek for "terrible tooth") is a dubious tyrannosaurid dinosaur genus containing a single species, Deinodon horridus. D. horridus is known only from a set of teeth found in the Late Cretaceous Judith River Formation of Montana and named by paleontologist Joseph Leidy in 1856.[1] These were the first tyrannosaurid remains to be described and had been collected by Ferdinand Vandeveer Hayden.[1] The teeth of Deinodon were slightly heterodont, and the holotype of Aublysodon can probably be assigned to Deinodon.[2]

History and classification

Teeth assigned by Leidy

It is likely that the fossilized teeth of D. horridus belonged to the dinosaur later identified as

Daspletosaurus torosus, it must be considered a nomen vanum ("empty name").[5] Since Russell published his opinion, most researchers have regarded Deinodon as a nomen dubium,[4] though some have argued that since Deinodon and Gorgosaurus cannot be distinguished, they should be synonymized with D. horridus as the valid name for "Gorgosaurus" skeletons.[6] Additionally, several researchers have agreed that the genus Aublysodon (including the species A. mirandus and A. lateralis), should also be considered a synonym of Deinodon, since it is based on incisor teeth that likely come from the same animal.[2][3][6] Lambe (1902) went further, and said that as originally named, Deinodon was not preoccupied, and instead, regarded Aublysodon as a nomen nudum.[2]

Description

Deinodon is known from a few, slightly heterodont teeth.[2]

A few phalanges, and a metatarsal with fragments of others, were found to be possibly assignable to D. horridus by Lambe in 1902.[2]

List of species and synonyms

Numerous species were referred to the genus Deinodon in the past. However, because most researchers now consider the genus and its type species nomina dubia, any additional species referred to the genus cannot be supported.

Name Author Year Combination author Combination year Status Notes
Deinodon horridus Leidy 1856 Leidy 1856 Nomen dubium, type species
Deinodon explanatus Cope 1876 Lambe 1902 Reclassified as
Dromaeosaurus explanatus
nomen dubium 		Originally Laelaps explanatus
Deinodon falculus Cope 1876 Osborn 1902 Reclassified as
Dromaeosaurus falculus
nomen dubium 		Originally Laelaps falculus
Deinodon incrassatus Cope 1876 Osborn 1902 Nomen dubium Originally Laelaps incrassatus
Deinodon lateralis Cope 1876 Hay 1902 Synonym of Deinodon horridus[citation needed] Originally Aublysodon lateralis
Deinodon cristatus Cope 1877 Osborn 1902 Synonym of
Troodon formosus
 		Originally Laelaps cristatus
Deinodon hazenianus Cope 1877 Osborn 1902 Nomen dubium Originally Laelaps hazenianus
Deinodon laevifrons Cope 1877 Osborn 1902 Reclassified as
Dromaeosaurus laevifrons
 		Originally Laelaps laevifrons
Deinodon amplus Marsh 1892 Hay 1902 Reclassified as
Aublysodon amplus
 		Originally Aublysodon amplus
Deinodon cristatus Marsh 1892 Hay 1902 Reclassified as
Aublysodon cristatus
 		Originally Aublysodon cristatus
Deinodon grandis Marsh 1890 Osborn 1916 Synonym of Deinodon horridus Originally Ornithomimus grandis
Deinodon sarcophagus Osborn 1905 Matthew & Brown 1922 Reclassified as
Albertosaurus sarcophagus
 		Originally Albertosaurus sarcophagus
Deinodon libratus Lambe 1914 Matthew & Brown 1922 Synonym of
Gorgosaurus libratus
 		Originally Gorgosaurus libratus
Deinodon arctunguis Parks 1928 Kuhn 1939 Synonym of
Albertosaurus sarcophagus
 		Originally Albertosaurus arctunguis
Deinodon novojilovi Maleev 1955 Maleev 1964 Synonym of
Tarbosaurus bataar
 		Originally Gorgosaurus novojilovi
Deinodon sternbergi Matthew & Brown 1923 Kuhn 1965 Synonym of
Gorgosaurus libratus
 		Originally Gorgosaurus sternbergi
Deinodon periculosus Riabinin 1930 Kuhn 1965 Synonym of
Tarbosaurus periculosus
 		Originally Albertosaurus periculosus
Deinodon lancensis Gilmore 1946 Kuhn 1965 Reclassified as
Nanotyrannus lancensis
 		Originally Gorgosaurus lancensis
Deinodon lancinator Maleev 1955 Kuhn 1965 Synonym of
Tarbosaurus bataar
 		Originally Gorgosaurus lancinator
Deinodon kenabekides Hay 1899 Olshevsky 1995 Synonym of Deinodon horridus Originally Dryptosaurus kenabekides

See also

References

  1. ^ a b Leidy, J. (1856). "Notices of the remains of extinct reptiles and fishes, discovered by Dr. F.V. Hayden in the badlands of the Judith River, Nebraska Territory." Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., 8(2): 72.
  2. ^
    doi:10.5962/bhl.title.61817. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help
    )
  3. ^ a b Matthew, W.D. and Brown, B. (1922). "The family Deinodontidae, with notice of a new genus from the Cretaceous of Alberta." Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural History, 46(6): 367-385.
  4. ^
    S2CID 83744433
    .
  5. ^ Russell, D. (1970). "Tyrannosaurs from the Late Cretaceous of western Canada." National Museum of Natural Science Publications in Palaeontology, 1: 1–34.
  6. ^ a b Sahni, A. (1972). "The vertebrate fauna of the Judith River Formation, Montana." Bulletin of the AMNH, 147(6).
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