Describer

Williamson & Carr, 2003

Time

Cretaceous Late Campanian

Classification

Ornithischia Genasauria Cerapoda Marginocephalia Pachycephalosauria Pachycephalosauridae [Pachycephalosaurinae]

Diet

Herbivore

Fossilsite

Kirtland Formation or Kirtland Shale, De-na-zin Member. (= \\\\\\\"upper shale member\\\\\\\"), San Juan Basin > San Juan Co. > Bisti/De-na-zin Wilderness Area > Willow Wash > NMMNH locality L-3921, New Mexico, US

Fall Under

Sphaerotholus buchholtzae

Info

Skull

Sphaerotholus buchholtzae (Williamson & Carr, 2003) > Sphaerotholus goodwini (Williamson & Carr, 2003)

Holotype

NMMNH P-27403: Skull dome lacking facial and palatal bones

Hypodigm

APK:50/0: NMMNH P-30068 nearly complete left dentary w/ squamosal and cranial fragments, in addition to holotype skull dome.

The skull was discovered by Paul Sealey, an adjunct naturalist at the museum during a collecting trip led by Williamson in the spring of 1998. \\\\\\\"Sphaerotholus,\\\\\\\" from the Greek words for \\\\\\\"ball\\\\\\\" and \\\\\\\"dome,\\\\\\\" the species name, is a reference to Goodwin, who works at the University of California Museum of Paleontology in Berkeley.

Possible subjective synonym of Prenocephale



Sullivan, R. M. (2003) Revision of the dinosaur Stegoceras Lambe (Ornithischia, Pachycephalosauridae): Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, v. 23, n. 1, p. 181-207 resurrects [Prenocephale brevis], Prenocephale edmontonensis, and [Prenocephale goodwini] = Sphaerotholus goodwini.)

Diagnosis

Parietosquamosal bar (in caudal aspect) reducing in depth laterally, to lesser extent than in Sphaerotholus buchholtzae. parietalreduce to thin slip between squamosals (Williamson and Carr, 2003)