A Problematic Tyrannosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) Skeleton and Its Implications for Tyrannosaurid Diversity in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation (Upper Cretaceous) of Alberta

A Problematic Tyrannosaurid (Dinosauria: Theropoda) Skeleton and Its Implications for Tyrannosaurid Diversity in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation (Upper Cretaceous) of Alberta

ABSTRACT Several published censuses have noted the presence of two tyrannosaurids, Daspletosaurus sp. and Albertosaurus sarcophagus, within the Upper Cretaceous Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Alberta. Although A. sarcophagus is known from more than a dozen major discoveries in these strata, Daspletos...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Anatomical record (Hoboken, N.J. : 2007) Vol. 303; no. 4; pp. 673 - 690
Main Authors: Mallon, Jordan C., Bura, Jonathan R., Schumann, Dirk, Currie, Philip J.
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Hoboken, USA John Wiley & Sons, Inc 01-04-2020
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Subjects:
Alberta
Albertosaurus sarcophagus
Animals
Cretaceous
Daspletosaurus
Dinosaurs - anatomy & histology
Fossils
Horseshoe Canyon Formation
morphometrics
osteohistology
Paleontology
Phylogeny
Skull - anatomy & histology
Special Issue
taxonomy
Tyrannosauridae
Alberta
Horseshoe Canyon
Tyrannosauridae
taxonomy
Horseshoe Canyon Formation
morphometrics
osteohistology
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Summary:ABSTRACT Several published censuses have noted the presence of two tyrannosaurids, Daspletosaurus sp. and Albertosaurus sarcophagus, within the Upper Cretaceous Horseshoe Canyon Formation of Alberta. Although A. sarcophagus is known from more than a dozen major discoveries in these strata, Daspletosaurus sp. is known from just a single problematic skeleton (lacking most of the skull) of a young individual. Here we describe and figure this skeleton, and marshal a variety of osteohistologic, morphometric, and phylogenetic methods to accurately determine its taxonomic status. Although none of these methods individually provides convincing evidence regarding the affinities of the specimen, together (and including other historical and biostratigraphic considerations) they strongly imply that the skeleton instead pertains to a young A. sarcophagus. In this way, we show that only a single species of tyrannosaurid is definitively present in the Horseshoe Canyon Formation, greatly simplifying interpretations of tyrannosaurid evolution and ecology in this setting. Anat Rec, 303:673–690, 2020. © 2019 The Authors. The Anatomical Record published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Association of Anatomists.
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ISSN:1932-8486
1932-8494
DOI:10.1002/ar.24199