Akainacephalus

Name: Akainacephalus ‭(‬spike head‭)‬.
Phonetic: Ah-kane-ah-sef-ah-lus.
Named By: Jelle P.‭ ‬Wiersma‭ & ‬Randall B.‭ ‬Irmis‭ ‬-‭ ‬2018.
Classification: Chordata,‭ ‬Reptilia,‭ ‬Dinosauria,‭ ‬Ornithischia,‭ ‬Ankylosauridae,‭ ‬Ankylosaurini.
Species: A.‭ ‬johnsoni‭ (‬type‭)‬.
Diet: Herbivore.
Size: Holotype roughly about‭ ‬3.75‭ ‬meters long.
Known locations: USA,‭ ‬Utah‭ ‬-‭ ‬Kaiparowits Formation.
Time period: Campanian of the Cretaceous.
Fossil representation: Skull and partial postcranial skeleton.




       Akainacephalus is a genus of ankylosaur that lived in North America during‭ ‬the late Cretaceous.‭ ‬During this time,‭ ‬the‭ ‬central portion of North America was submerged by the Western Interior Seaway,‭ ‬carving North‭ ‬America into two landmasses‭; ‬Appalacia to the East,‭ ‬and Laramidia to the West.‭ ‬Akainacephalus hails from‭ ‬the southern portion of Laramidia,‭ ‬and at the time of the genus description,‭ ‬is the best preserved ankylosaur from this area.‭ ‬Akainacephalus however was not the first ankylosaur discovered in this region,‭ ‬another ankylosaur named Nodocephalosaurus is also known.‭ ‬Both of these two genera are noted for having similar skull structure,‭ ‬though the original describers are confident in Akainacephalus being a distinct genus after testing between known skull elements of Akainacephalus and Nodocephalosaurus.‭
       Additionally,‭ ‬both Akainacephalus and Nodocephalosaurus have skulls that appear to be more similar to Asian ankylosaurid genera such as‭ ‬Tarchia and Saichania‭ ‬than to those seen in other North American ankylosaurid dinosaurs that are known from the Northern portion of Laramidia.‭ ‬This reinforces the idea of species radiations between Asia and North America,‭ ‬but then this has also been indicated elsewhere.‭ ‬Both Asia and North America had similar‭ ‬kinds of late Cretaceous dinosaurs as one another,‭ ‬with remains of hadrosaurs, ankylosaurs,‭ ‬dromaeosuars,‭ ‬tyrannosaurs,‭ ‬ceratopsians and ornithomimosaurs amongst others known from both continents‭ ‬during same time periods.

Further reading
-‭ ‬A new southern Laramidian ankylosaurid,‭ ‬Akainacephalus johnsoni gen.‭ ‬et sp.‭ ‬nov.,‭ ‬from the upper Campanian Kaiparowits Formation of southern Utah,‭ ‬USA.‭ ‬-‭ ‬PeerJ.‭ ‬6:‭ ‬e5016.‭ ‬-‭ ‬Jelle P.‭ ‬Wiersma‭ & ‬Randall B.‭ ‬Irmis‭ ‬-‭ ‬2018.



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