Brachiosaurus sp. tooth

[hxmendoza]

Re-acquired my Brachiosaurus sp. tooth after having parted with it 15 years ago. 

 

Spent part of yesterday at DMNS with our resident Sauropod expert Virginia Tidwell comparing it with the teeth of the Gunma Museum Camarasaurus skull's dentition we have a great cast of, and the SMA 0002 Camarasaurus skull dentition. And then also with the Berlin Giraffititan Brancai skull's well preserved teeth. 

 

Virginia and Ken Carpenter had verified the ID for me when I first owned it years back.  But Virginia and I decided to do a double check now that there is better info available. 

 

No doubt about it being from Brachiosaurus. Very likely Brachiosaurus altithorax. 

 

Distinguishing characteristics from Camarasaurus teeth are the axial twist and the wrinkled enamel going much further down along the neck and root of the tooth. Unfortunately, much of the wrinkled enamel has flaked off along the neck. But there is still plenty enough there to show that it went down much further than all positional teeth on Camarasaurus. And that it is a very good match with the teeth of Giraffititan (formerly Brachiosaurus) branchai, which show the same traits. 

 

Later Early Cretaceous brachiosaurs/titanosauromorphs show the same axial twist with the lengthened enamel. Though the teeth by this point start showing more narrowing of the crown. 

 

Before anyone throws out the tooth that is figured in Carpenter and Tidwell's paper on the Felch Quarry Brachiosaurus skull. Virginia acknowledged my observation that that crown looks like a Camarasaurus tooth. There was concern about that, but no other Camarasaurus bones were found in that specific Quarry. So ultimately, though there was doubt, the decision was made by Ken Carpenter to include that tooth in the restoration of the skull. 

 

So, yes, all bases were covered yesterday. 

 

Brachiosaurus sp. 

(probably Brachiosaurus altithorax)

Late Jurassic

Morrison Formation

Como Bluff

Albany County, Wyoming 

USA

[-Andy-]

What a dream tooth!

 

Didn't think it'd be possible to own a Branchiosaurus tooth but if anyone's gonna have one, it's you Henry.

[hxmendoza]

6 hours ago, -Andy- said:

What a dream tooth!

 

Didn't think it'd be possible to own a Branchiosaurus tooth but if anyone's gonna have one, it's you Henry.

Thanks Andy!

[siteseer]

I assume a Brachiosaurus tooth is rarer than a Camarasaurus tooth.  A friend has some Morrison teeth but I'm not sure he has a Brachiosaurus specimen.

[hxmendoza]

On ‎5‎/‎16‎/‎2017 at 5:15 PM, siteseer said:

I assume a Brachiosaurus tooth is rarer than a Camarasaurus tooth.  A friend has some Morrison teeth but I'm not sure he has a Brachiosaurus specimen.

Siteseer, yes, Brachiosaurus teeth are much rarer than Camarasaurus teeth.

[hxmendoza]

I went back and realized that I forgot to add "cf." to the labeling above and on my other post. 

 

Proper label should read:

 

cf. Brachiosaurus sp. 

(probably Brachiosaurus altithorax)

Late Jurassic

Morrison Formation

Como Bluff

Albany County, Wyoming 

USA

[The Speeding Carno]

The envy...it's so overwhelming...fossil is too beautiful... 

[zekky]

Could you explain the axial twist? I've been searching for over a year on how to distinguish Brachiosaururs and Camarasaurus teeth. 

[hxmendoza]

9 hours ago, zekky said:

Could you explain the axial twist? I've been searching for over a year on how to distinguish Brachiosaururs and Camarasaurus teeth. 

 

Hi Zekky,

 

It's kind of hard to explain. But I'll try my best.

 

By axial twist, I mean that the crown had an offset twist relative to the neck of the crown. It's easier to see when comparing Brachiosaurus teeth directly with Camarasaurus teeth. When looking at a Camarasaurus tooth it's essentially like you are looking at a brand new spoon. The crown (spoon head) doesn't twist much from the neck of the root (the neck of the spoon). The crown may look like it offsets in relation to the alveolus in the jaw but it's essentially a spoon in untwisted (or very slightly) shape sitting in the alveolus. 

 

In Brachiosaurus teeth imagine that the spoon head has a noticeable twist or deformation relative to the neck (the axis point) of the spoon. 

 

But the major differences are that the enamel doesn't stop at the beginning of the root. It actually narrows and follows the shape of the root for a bit, at least in appearance. It looks like it merges into the root. Whereas in Camarasaurus teeth the enamel distinctly expands out from the beginning of the root. 

 

My tooth had much of the enamel flake off from the neck, but there is still plenty enough there to tell it narrowed down and merged into the root. 

 

Also, Brachiosaurus teeth are proportionately narrower than Camarasaurus teeth, throughout the dental battery.

 

Hope that helps clarify somewhat.

[zekky]

Thanks it helps!