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Dear List,
My computer caught cooties again
last week, so I couldn't respond to two questions that I actually did know the
answers to.
First of all, Hesperasaurus is a
large nearly complete primitive looking stegosaur. It was found and named by the
commercial fossil outfit, Western Paleontological Labs, about ten years ago. It
was discovered in an Early Morrison location in Wyoming. The name Hesperasaurus
or "Western reptile", is a pun on the companys' name.
The fairly complete skeleton was
sold to a Japanese museum over eight years ago. Casts were made, and a
complete skeletal replica is in the newly constructed North American Museum
of Anceint Life, in Lehi, Utah. TMK, a complete disciption of this animal will
be in the new armored dinosaur volume hopefully being published
soon.
Secondly, someone emailed about
the lack of icthyosaurs in the US. I know that Dan, in his gentle way, reminded
them of Nevada's state fossil Shonisaurus. The Sundance Formation in Wyoming and
Montana, are crawling with small fossil fish lizards. I have personally seen
these fossils. They're about the length of a small dolphin.
Cliff Green
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