Rare, 1.48" Serrated, Megalosaurid (Marshosaurus) Tooth - Colorado

This is a rare, 1.48" long Megalosaurid (Marshosaurus?) tooth collected this past summer from the Morrison Formation. It comes from our partners private quarry East of Dinosaur, Colorado. It has nice enamel and fine serrations. The very tip of the tooth is missing. It was left partially embedded in the sandstone that it was found in, creating a natural display base. There are several repaired cracks and some minor, gap fill restoration. There is also some restoration on one edge, right at the base.

There are two main characteristics that distinguish it from the much more frequently found Allosaurus teeth. First, the serrations on the front edge of the tooth extend less than half way down the length of the tooth. Secondly there is little to no spiraling of serrations seen on Allosaurus teeth. It's also fairly thin in cross-section and hooked.

There are three described Megalosaurs in the Morrison Formation; Marshosaurus, Stokesosaurus and Torvosaurus. The tooth is too small to be Torvosaurus and Marshosaurus is the more common of the remaining two.

Marshosaurus is a genus of medium-sized Megalosaur from the Late Jurassic, Morrison Formation. In 2010, Gregory S. Paul estimated its length at 4.5 meters (15 feet) and its weight at 200 kilograms (440 pounds). It is one of the rarer theropods in the Morrison Formation: only a single partial specimen has ever been recovered.

An artist's reconstruction of Marshosaurus,  by Danny Cicchett. Creative Commons License
An artist's reconstruction of Marshosaurus, by Danny Cicchett. Creative Commons License
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DETAILS
SPECIES
Marshosaurus?
LOCATION
Dinosaurs Of America Quarry, Dinosaur, Colorado
FORMATION
Brushy Basin Member, Morrison Formation
SIZE
1.48" long (straightline)
CATEGORY
SUB CATEGORY
ITEM
#182608
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