megabass22 Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 As most Spinosaurus fossils are in fact from Morocco, shouldn´t they be labeled as Spinosaurus maroccanus? or Spinosaurus cf. maroccanus, as Spinosaurus aegypticus only is known from Northwestern Africa (as far as i know)? Or are they in fact Spinosaurus aegypticus, or should they just be labeled as Spinosaurus sp.? What would be the best move? I´ve seen fossil sellers and sites offering the same species labeled as two different ones, so which whould it actually be? What is your opinion? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sseth Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 Great question. I spend quite a lot of my time working with fossils from Morocco, and there is not, as of yet, a Spinosaurus maroccanus that has been accepted by the scientific community. This in no way means that it is not a separate species, or even genus, but to this point it has not been proven. Through my research, I believe that there are two very distinct species of spinosaurids found in Morocco. The teeth are very different, as are the shapes of the hand (manus) claws. Most of my research has been done on pieces that reside in private collections so it can not be published but it is what it is. I believe that as more of these fossils find their way into museum collections we may see multiple species of spinosaurids described from Morocco. This said, given that there is currently only a single described species of Spinosaurus, it is correct for those selling them to list them as Spinosaurus aegypticus, although I, myself, feel that they could also be listed as Spinosaurus sp.? and it would be equally accurate. 2 _____________________________________ Seth www.fossilshack.com www.americanfossil.com www.fishdig.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
megabass22 Posted November 5, 2013 Author Share Posted November 5, 2013 Thanks for your very informative answer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regg Cato Posted November 5, 2013 Share Posted November 5, 2013 Great question. I spend quite a lot of my time working with fossils from Morocco, and there is not, as of yet, a Spinosaurus maroccanus that has been accepted by the scientific community. This in no way means that it is not a separate species, or even genus, but to this point it has not been proven. Through my research, I believe that there are two very distinct species of spinosaurids found in Morocco. The teeth are very different, as are the shapes of the hand (manus) claws. Most of my research has been done on pieces that reside in private collections so it can not be published but it is what it is. I believe that as more of these fossils find their way into museum collections we may see multiple species of spinosaurids described from Morocco. This said, given that there is currently only a single described species of Spinosaurus, it is correct for those selling them to list them as Spinosaurus aegypticus, although I, myself, feel that they could also be listed as Spinosaurus sp.? and it would be equally accurate. +1 there hasn't been anything published that I'm aware of describing comparative dental morphology in S. maroccanus and S. aegyptiacus, so this may again be a case of a label being what it is for the sake of calling it something. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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