| Craspedodon | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Tooth from theholotype ofC. lonzeensis | |
Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Clade: | Dinosauria |
| Clade: | †Ornithischia |
| Clade: | †Ceratopsia (?) |
| Genus: | †Craspedodon Dollo,1883[1] |
| Type species | |
| †Craspedodon lonzeensis Dollo, 1883 | |
| Synonyms | |
| |
Craspedodon (meaning 'edge tooth') is an extinctgenus ofornithischiandinosaur from theLate CretaceousLonzée Member ofBelgium. Only a single species,C. lonzeensis, is known.
In1883 Belgian paleontologistLouis Dollo described the fauna found in theLate Cretaceous of Belgium nearLonzée, naming the theropod speciesMegalosaurus lonzeensis and the new herbivorous dinosaurCraspedodon lonzeensis. Dollo identifiedCraspedodon from three teeth in the collections of theMuseum of Natural Sciences inBrussels, from theLonzée Member, finding the most similarities with species ofIguanodon amongst ornithischians. Thegenus name is a reference to the strong ridges that cross the teeth, while thespecies name is a reference to the locality where it was found.[1] Dollo specified the Lonzée Member as being middleSenonian in age, which is now understood to beConiacian toSantonian.[1][2]
Since its description,Craspedodon was considered anornithopod following the relationship withIguanodon suggested by Dollo, but this was revisited in 2007 by Belgian paleontologistsPascal Godefroit and Olivier Lambert. Godefroit and Lambert identified that the three teeth described by Dollo are IRSNB R57, R58 and R59, and rather than being an ornithopod, are actually some of the earliest evidence ofNeoceratopsia from Europe. They were unable to determine whetherCraspedodon was a diagnostic taxon or anomen dubium, identifying some features that suggest separation but also noting that tooth anatomy is to poorly understood to be definitive.[2]
Craspedodon was long thought to be aniguanodontian, butGodefroit & Lambert (2007) suggested that it was actually aneoceratopsian, perhaps closer toCeratopsoidea thanProtoceratopsidae.[2]
If the reidentification is correct,Craspedodon would be the first neoceratopsian known fromEurope.[2] However, the describers ofAjkaceratops noted thatCraspedodon might instead represent ahadrosauroidornithopod.[3]