SPINOSAURUS TEETH

[TOM BUCKLEY]

Does anyone know why there are so many Spinosaurus teeth on the market? Did they shed them as a shark does? Did they discover a Spinosaurus graveyard in Morocco? 

 

Tom

[Pterygotus]

All dinosaurs shed their teeth I think. It’s just that they are common and a lot of the ones on the market are also fakes/restored .

[Troodon]

Spinosaurids were one of the principle dinosaurs in the Kem Kem and like most dinosaurs shed their teeth but not to the extent of sharks.  We dont know how many genus/species existed probably at least two so there were lots of them and they had a jaws with well over 50 teeth .  I've got to believe that being semi-aquatic it provided a good condition to preserve their teeth why you see so many.  But they are not alone you see tons of Abelsaurid and Carcharodontosaurid teeth from that region.

 

 

Paper on replacement rates:

Evolution of high tooth replacement rates in theropod dinosaurs Michael D. D’Emic N. Gavras, Elizabeth Mardakhayava *, Patrick M. O’Connor  , Eric K. Lund

 

[TOM BUCKLEY]

13 minutes ago, Pterygotus said:

All dinosaurs shed their teeth I think. It’s just that they are common and a lot of the ones on the market are also fakes/restored .

Are there certain characteristics of fake teeth that I should watch for?

 

Tom

[Troodon]

The Kem Kem beds are found in southeast morroco and the Ifezouane and Aoufous formations are the principle dinosaur beds

[TOM BUCKLEY]

11 minutes ago, Troodon said:

Spinosaurids were one of the principle dinosaurs in the Kem Kem and like most dinosaurs shed their teeth but not to the extent of sharks.  We dont know how many genus/species existed probably at least two so there were lots of them and they had a jaw with well over 50 teeth .  I've got to believe that being semi-aquatic provided a good condition to preserve their teeth why you see so many.  But they are not alone you see tons of Abelsaurid and Carcharodontosaurid teeth from that region.

 

 

Paper on replacement rates:

Evolution of high tooth replacement rates in theropod dinosaurs Michael D. D’Emic N. Gavras, Elizabeth Mardakhayava *, Patrick M. O’Connor  , Eric K. Lund

 

 

I was just about to ask about the prevalence of Carcharodontosaurid teeth also. I find it strange that a T-rex type predator would have been so prevalent. Isn't there a prey / predator ratio that must be maintained for the survival of both prey and predator?

 

Tom

[LordTrilobite]

There are several reasons for this.

 

- Though dinosaurs are generally rare, Spinosaurids seem to be the most common dinosaur in the Kem Kem beds.

- Fossils are being dug up on an industrial scale in Morocco.

- Since Spinosaurus is a very popular dinosaur it becomes a more sought after fossil than other vertebrate remains and so more of them make it to the open market.

- All reptiles keep shedding their teeth their whole life. One individual can go through a whole lot of teeth in its lifetime.

 

 

Just now, TOM BUCKLEY said:

I was just about to ask about the prevalence of Carcharodontosaurid teeth also. I find it strange that a T-rex type predator would have been so prevalent. Isn't there a prey / predator ratio that must be maintained for the survival of both prey and predator?

 

Tom

Carcharodontosaurids are very different predators compared to Tyrannosaurids. Different feeding style. Tyrannosaurs are the pittbulls of the dinosaur world. Strong teeth for crushing bone, strong necks and wide jaws.

Charcharodontosaurids have thin faces and thin meat cutting teeth.
 

But yeah, there seem to be a lot of predators in the Kem Kem beds. Large Spinosaurids and Carcharodontosaurids. Medium sized Abelisaurids. Probably also Neovenatorids, Noasaurids and Dromaeosaurids. There are large Pterosaurs.

There are small, medium and huge crocs present too.

 

And for prey there's a load of fish and the occasional sauropod. But there don't seem to many ornithopods. There's only a single footprint known for that whole group in the area.

[Troodon]

39 minutes ago, TOM BUCKLEY said:

Are there certain characteristics of fake teeth that I should watch for?

 

Tom

First if you are not familiar with these teeth I would suggest that you post any interests before you buy. Few fake teeth mostly a resto issue. .  Be on the lookout for matrix being attached to the tooth.  Moroccans like to hide defects with a glue sand mixture.  Another common problem are composites to extend the teeth or add roots.  So look for clean teeth with even color.  If there is a root definitely post it here to let experts comment on it.

[TOM BUCKLEY]

6 minutes ago, LordTrilobite said:

There are several reasons for this.

 

- Though dinosaurs are generally rare, Spinosaurids seem to be the most common dinosaur in the Kem Kem beds.

- Fossils are being dug up on an industrial scale in Morocco.

- Since Spinosaurus is a very popular dinosaur it becomes a more sought after fossil than other vertebrate remains and so more of them make it to the open market.

- All reptiles keep shedding their teeth their whole life. One individual can go through a whole lot of teeth in its lifetime.

 

 

Thanks for the explanations, but, shouldn't there be a lot of bones also?

Tom

[Troodon]

30 minutes ago, TOM BUCKLEY said:

 

I was just about to ask about the prevalence of Carcharodontosaurid teeth also. I find it strange that a T-rex type predator would have been so prevalent. Isn't there a prey / predator ratio that must be maintained for the survival of both prey and predator?

 

Tom

First Carcharodontosaurids are nothing like Trex that a inexact word used by sellers.   They are all theropods: Carchs, Abelsaurids, Spinosaurids, undescribed theropods and Deltadromeus and all meat eaters in the KK.  There was definitely an imbalance in this region and still a big unknown why but several papers have been written to try to explain it but some believed it to be a result of a unique paleoenviroment that was more focused on aquatic food.

 

Paper

Unbalanced food web in a Late Cretaceous dinosaur assemblage
Emilie Läng, Larbi Boudad, Laszlo Maio, Elias Samankassou, Jérôme Tabouelle, Haiyan Tong, Lionel Cavin

[doushantuo]

that paper can be found in :

Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 381–382 (2013) 26–32

[dinosaur man]

4 hours ago, Troodon said:

Spinosaurids were one of the principle dinosaurs in the Kem Kem and like most dinosaurs shed their teeth but not to the extent of sharks.  We dont know how many genus/species existed probably at least two so there were lots of them and they had a jaws with well over 50 teeth .  I've got to believe that being semi-aquatic it provided a good condition to preserve their teeth why you see so many.  But they are not alone you see tons of Abelsaurid and Carcharodontosaurid teeth from that region.

 

 

Paper on replacement rates:

Evolution of high tooth replacement rates in theropod dinosaurs Michael D. D’Emic N. Gavras, Elizabeth Mardakhayava *, Patrick M. O’Connor  , Eric K. Lund

 

Maybe the Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus and Abelisaur teeth from the Kem Kem beds are common because of a special way enamel preserves there.

[LordTrilobite]

4 hours ago, dinosaur man said:

Maybe the Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus and Abelisaur teeth from the Kem Kem beds are common because of a special way enamel preserves there.

I doubt that. Bones seem as common as teeth. What is typical of the Kem Kem beds though, is that most of it is disarticulated. Teeth and bones are usually found isolated. Articulated material is rare.

Teeth are just sexier and sell better.

 

Edit: As Troodon says, yes enamel preserves better. What I meant to say was that Kem Kem isn't special in preserving enamel better than other locations.

[Troodon]

36 minutes ago, dinosaur man said:

Maybe the Spinosaurus, Carcharodontosaurus and Abelisaur teeth from the Kem Kem beds are common because of a special way enamel preserves there.

Yes enamel preserves better, everywhere not just in the KK,  but you have an entire industry that has been established in towns throughout the Taouz region that all they do is mine yes mine fossils throughout the year.   So given that the paleo-environment might have helped the fossilization process and coupled with the abundance of teeth and their ease and sexiness to market them you see lots of teeth for sale.