Eolambia (Ornithopoda) osteology in PLoS ONE

[Ben Creisler <bcreisler@gmail.com>]

From: Ben Creisler
bcreisler@gmail.com

New in PLoS ONE:


Andrew T. McDonald, John Bird, James I. Kirkland & Peter Dodson (20120
Osteology of the Basal Hadrosauroid Eolambia caroljonesa (Dinosauria:
Ornithopoda) from the Cedar Mountain Formation of Utah.
PLoS ONE 7(10): e45712.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0045712
http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0045712

Background

Eolambia caroljonesa is known from copious remains from the lower
Cenomanian Mussentuchit Member of the Cedar Mountain Formation in
eastern Utah; however, the taxon has been only briefly described.
Thus, we present herein a complete osteological description of
Eolambia.

Methodology/Principal Findings

The description of Eolambia presented here is based upon the holotype
partial skeleton (CEUM 9758), paratype partial skull (CEUM 5212), and
abundant disarticulated elements from two bonebeds that contain
juvenile individuals. These remains allow the skeletal anatomy of
Eolambia to be documented almost fully and a revised diagnosis to be
proposed.

Conclusions/Significance

The description provided here facilitates comparisons between Eolambia
and other iguanodontians and allows Eolambia to be coded for
additional characters in phylogenetic analyses. The close affinity
between Eolambia and Probactrosaurus gobiensis from the Early
Cretaceous of China supports previous hypotheses of faunal interchange
between Asia and North America in the early Late Cretaceous.