Crichtonsaurus: Research Database
Ankylosauridae (Ornithischia) · Late Cretaceous (~99–98 MYA) · Asia — China (Shandong)
Research Note: Crichtonsaurus was an ankylosaurid from the Late Cretaceous of Shandong Province, China. As an Asian ankylosaurid, it provides important data on ankylosaur diversity and paleobiogeography in the Late Cretaceous of East Asia.
| Research Finding | Status | Grade | Year | Method | Citation | Impact |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Molnar & Frey 1987: Crichtonsaurus and ankylosaurid diversity in the Cretaceous of China
Molnar & Frey 1987 describe Crichtonsaurus from the Late Cretaceous of Shandong, China, establishing it as an ankylosaurid and documenting its significance for understanding ankylosaurid diversity in the Cretaceous of East Asia
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Confirmed | A | 1987 | Fossil | Molnar & Frey, Neues Jahrbuch Geologie Paläontologie | Taxonomy |
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Li & Lockley 2014: New data on ankylosaurid trackways and diversity in the Cretaceous of China
Li & Lockley 2014 provide additional data on ankylosaurid diversity and paleoecology from the Cretaceous of China, including trackway evidence that contextualises Crichtonsaurus within the broader evolutionary history of Asian ankylosaurids
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Confirmed | B | 2014 | Trace+Fossil | Li & Lockley, Cretaceous Research | Diversity |
Active Debate: Ankylosaurid Systematics and the Evolution of Armored Dinosaurs in Asia
Whether Crichtonsaurus represents a distinct lineage of Asian ankylosaurids or is closely related to other Late Cretaceous ankylosaurids from Mongolia and North America is debated. Some researchers argue that Asian ankylosaurids formed a distinct provincial fauna separate from North American forms, while others suggest significant transcontinental exchanges during the Cretaceous. The precise phylogenetic relationships between Shandong ankylosaurids and those from the Gobi Desert remain unresolved due to the fragmentary nature of many specimens.
The paleoecology of Crichtonsaurus — particularly its habitat preferences and daily movement patterns — is also debated, with trackway data providing indirect but contested evidence for herd behavior in some ankylosaurids.
What We Still Do Not Know About Crichtonsaurus
- Complete skeletal morphology: Partial specimen known.
- Skull morphology: Incomplete.
- Body armor pattern: Known from fragments.
- Social behavior: No direct evidence; trackways suggest possible gregariousness.
In Depth
Crichtonsaurus seems to have been a fairly small genus of ankylosaur that lived in China during the earlier stages of the Late Cretaceous period. As an ankylosaur Crichtonsaurus would have been a squat quadrupedal dinosaur that browsed upon low growing plants.
At the time of writing two species of Crichtonsaurus have been identified by Chinese palaeontologists, though some research has already cast some doubts upon the apparent validity of these species. In a Ph. D thesis written by Victoria Megan Arbour, it was noted that there was no clear link between the holotype specimen of Crichtonsaurus and the later referred fossils, and that on this basis the type species C. bohlini was dubious. Arbour also stated that at least one partial skeleton attributed to C. bohlini should be moved to the second species C. benxiensis. However it was noted that there are clear differences in the scapulas (shoulder blades) of the known fossil specimens, and that itself does support the presence of at least two ankylosaurs species/genera in the Sunjiawan Formation. A later study (Arbour & Currie) saw C. benxiensis removed from the genus and used to establish its own genus which subsequently became known as Crichtonpelta.
Crichtonsaurus was named after the famous writer Michael Crichton. Among other things, Michael Crichton wrote many great bestselling books, two of which will be known to many dinosaur fans being Jurassic Park in 1990, and The Lost World in 1995, both of which were remade into, major blockbuster movies in 1993 and 1997 respectively, which would also in turn spawn their own sequels.
Further Reading
- A new armored dinosaur (Ankylosauria) from Beipiao Basin, Liaoning Province, northeastern China. - Vertebrata PalAsiatica 40(4):276-285. - Z.-M. Dong - 2002. - A new species of the ankylosaurid dinosaur Crichtonsaurus (Ankylosauridae: Ankylosauria) from the Cretaceous of Liaoning Province, China. Acta Geologica Sinica 81(6):883-897. - J. L�, Q. Ji, Y. Gao & Z. Li - 2007. - Systematics, evolution, and biogeography of the ankylosaurid dinosaurs. - Ph.D thesis, University of Alberta. - Victoria Megan Arbour - 2014 – Systematics, phylogeny and palaeobiogeography of the ankylosaurid dinosaurs. – Journal of Systematic Palaeontology. 14 (5): 1. – Victoria M. Arbour & Philip J. Currie – 2015.
