Describer

Rich & Rich, 1989

Time

Cretaceous Early Aptian Albian

Classification

Ornithischia Ornithopoda Hypsilophodontidae

Diet

Herbivore

Fossilsite

Otway Group, Victoria, Australia

Length

> 2 < 3 meter

Info

Genus - Typespecies - Skull

Skull fragments, teeth, isolated postcrania. Tooth

Leaellynasaura has up to five ridges on both the buccal and lingual aspects of the crowns of unworn maxillary teeth. The fragmentary nature of the Australian hypsilophodontid material described to date does not permit a more precise assesment of the phylogenetic affinities of this genera under discussion.

Discovered by Tom and Pat Rich (of the Museum of Victoria and Monash University respectively) in Early Cretaceous (108 MYA) southeastern Australia and well within the Antartic Circle. L.amicagraphica is known from several specimens, including the holotype partial skull with teeth, skull material and a partical skeleton found near the holotype and probably part of the same individual, and limb elements from other sites.

This dinosaur was rather small, adults probably no more than 2 or 3 meters long. They do not know whether this is due to a collection bias or to the conditions that prevailed in the area