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Mosasaurs Vs Mosasaurus How do I Tell the Difference?


Mesozoic Mike

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Hello everybody

 

I see non specific mosasaur teeth from morocco all the time but what if I want to purchase a Mosasaurus tooth? How can I tell the differance? The following image is labeled as mosasaurus but how do I know that is true?

 

 

mosasaurus-teeth-6_1.jpg.7d45179fe6e335369fc7a5859324a822.jpg

 

Thank you

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Most times, especially for tiny ones, it's very difficult to determine an exact species of mosasaur as smaller are usually more generic. I believe this one is likely to be Prognathodon, probably P. anceps. Most sellers (the popular professional ones are not the "most"!) don't give a dam about what kind of Moroccan mosasaur they're dealing with and will simply label as Mosasaurus simply because a label like that is much more lucrative than a genus that practically nobody outside the fossil community knows of, which is why you might see labels like Mosasaurus anceps or Mosasaurus ptychodon. As far as I know, the main species of Mosasaurus from Khouribga is M. beaugei. My experience tells me that Mosasaurus teeth, especially M. beaugei, usually have flattened sides, making the teeth sort of a polygon rather than roundly conical. You can find this by checking the reflection, simply put the tooth at a light that allows a reflection to form.

 

Here's an example of a Mosasaurus beaugei tooth. Notice how the reflections show flattened sides and not a round texture.

Related image

If you're a fossil nut from Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Redondo Beach, or Torrance, feel free to shoot me a PM!

 

 

Mosasaurus_hoffmannii_skull_schematic.png

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Given how robust it is and being from Morocco, I would lean towards Prognathodon. Isolated mosasaur teeth can be hard to identify without locality context.

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@Mesozoic Mike

 

Have a look through this topic. ;) 

 

 

    Tim    -  VETERAN SHALE SPLITTER

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2 hours ago, Macrophyseter said:

...As far as I know, there are two species of Mosasaurus from Khouribga and they are M. beaugei and M. hoffmanniM. hoffmanni teeth seem to be rare,...

 

Incorrect.  M. hoffmanni has not been recognized as a valid species in Morocco.  Furthermore, it has been pointed out for you on a number of occasions on TFF and shown to be demonstrably false according to all the available published literature.  Why do you continue to advance this misleading info?

 

image.png.a84de26dad44fb03836a743755df237c.png

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It appears to continue to be old news...

 

Street, H.P. & Caldwell, M.W. 2017

Rediagnosis and redescription of Mosasaurus hoffmannii (Squamata: Mosasauridae) and an assessment of species assigned to the genus Mosasaurus.

Geological Magazine, 154(3):521-557   PDF LINK

image.thumb.png.ff76a1452d465fceb11d2412b5841c80.png

image.png.a84de26dad44fb03836a743755df237c.png

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1 hour ago, piranha said:

Furthermore, it has been pointed out for you on a number of occasions on TFF and shown to be demonstrably false according to all the available published literature.  Why do you continue to advance this misleading info?

I appreciate your correction but jeez, why the offensive?

 

I disagree with your claim that this has happens on multiple occasions, they are merely parts of a single thread posted 4 years ago when I was younger and bashfully unknowledged, which your responses are such that I still take into consideration even despite this contradiction.

 

If you really want me to give a reason why I still made this contradiction, the reason is such that is on my fault, but it is not because I am trying to advance clearly false information. The reason is that I have been gullible in the claims heard from some generally actively reliable members like the ones who have posted after your statement, (I did not read the thread after your statement so I did not know of these posts and your responses to them until now) stating or hinting that M. hoffmanni may exist in Morocco and assumed that a new study might have recognized the species there or was ongoing, without verifying. It is my fault of ignorance and gullibility to have not verified this at that or this moment, but this does not mean that I am attempting to intentionally mislead people. I will fix the mistake my post.

 

Still, I will make sure a gullible mistake like this does not happen again.

 

If you're a fossil nut from Palos Verdes, San Pedro, Redondo Beach, or Torrance, feel free to shoot me a PM!

 

 

Mosasaurus_hoffmannii_skull_schematic.png

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