RE: What're Rebbachisaurids? (was - New Nemegtosaurus paper)

[Tim Donovan <uwrk2@yahoo.com>]

> 
> Tim Williams (twilliams_alpha@hotmail.com) wrote: 

>the skull of
> _Nemegtosaurus_ and the postcervical skeleton of
> _Opisthocoelicaudia_ were
> found a few kilometers apart 

Actually Nemegt and Altan IV are about 50km apart.



>at the same
> stratigraphic level... 


 Not quite. Altan IV is higher. But that doesn't
matter because O. skarzynskii caudals and a footprint
matching the pes of O. skarzynskii are known from
Nemegt. The footprint was found in the Central Sayr
not far from the site where the Nemegtosaurus skull
was found.




> I'm sure Dr
> Currie feels the same
> way.


 "Nemegtosaurus and Opisthocoelicaudia are almost
certainly the same animal." (pers. comm.)



>   And to be honest, they were found at separate
> localities within the Nemegt
> Valley,


 No, see above, both are known from the type locality.

> but the presence of
> several sympatric species of highly similar sauropod
> from the Morrison
> levels
> indicates it _could_ happen elsewhere,


 Unlike the Morrison, the Nemegt was ornithiscian
dominated, and there was also potential competition
from Therizinosaurus, so I doubt more than one
titanosaur was present. 


  Tim


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