Tyrannosaurus Rex, or Nano tooth ?

[Brevicollis]

Hello, I was offered this 3,8 cm or 1,5 inch long Tyrannosauridae tooth from the hell creek formation of Montana, Garfield county, and wondered if its really "the king" or its smaller cousin. The base doesnt show the pinch I would expect from Nano teeth, but appears to be a bit slender compared to T-Rex teeth. Maybe its just the jaw position, teeth can variy after that, and also after how old the animal was. Young Rex teeth are different than adult ones. The tooth is also not complete, as its completly missing the transition between it and the root, so we have to work with a partial. And also, the broken ends also could appear like a pinch because of the distance of the enamel, but it really is an "0" shape. T-Rex maxilary tooth ? Saw one in Troodons guide, base shape looked quite similar.

 

I just wanted to make sure, its really one.

 

@hadrosauridae, @ThePhysicist, @North, @JorisVV, your help is appreciated 

 

If it should be Nano, I just turn to the side who doesnt believe in the existence of it. 

Problem solved 

Edited July 10 by Brevicollis

[hadrosauridae]

Hmmmm, thats tough.  The broken base is confusing things too.  I don't see the tell-tale pinch, (which leads it away from nan) but that could have been lost in the damage.  It also looks rather thin (aka laterally compressed) which trends is away from rex.  The serrations look pretty fine, so you might see if you can get a good mid-tooth count of serrations across several centimeters.  That may help tip the scale one way or the other.

[JoeS]

Hi, not sure why you call this a partial tooth, the base is there. The base looks rectangular not oval, the tip is rather slender and the serrations look rather fine, all points that would argue for Nanotyrannus. Better images of the serrations and denticle counts would be helpful.

[Brevicollis]

@JoeS, I think its a partial because the carina seen on picture two abruptly ends, and does not slowly merge with the tooth at the base. Also, maxilary Rex teeth are also kinda rectangular shaped, but if all of us cant decide on a species, let it us just call "Tyrannosauridae indet."

Everyone is happy, as you can decide what it is. And here at home and in my friend group, no one questions it further. I know, thats not how paleontology works, but...

Edited July 9 by Brevicollis

[trilobites_are_awesome]

Nice tooth!

[Brevicollis]

6 hours ago, trilobites_are_awesome said:

Nice tooth!

Yes, I agree. It was sold a couple hours ago, just 2 minutes after my father has asked me if im interested in it and if I can afford it.

So maybe he might have bought it for me, or just someone else for themselves.

I'll ask him about that today.

 

Edit : it was a coincidence, someone else bought it for themselves. Im happy for that person, he got a very nice Tyrannosauridae tooth for a good price !

Edited July 10 by Brevicollis

[North]

When looking at teeth, I would wish to see pictures without the fingers since big part is then unseen. And angles where I can judge thickness and see how carinae positions.

 

But as others mentioned, it looks thinnish, but better picture could have helped for better judgement.

Fingers blocks the full view, but some curvature is there.

Base seems to have some slight pinch, but since it is bit broken it would need to be seen in person.

Serrations are fine, close up would help, but with that size I would expect to see them quite well if its rex.

 

So I would say most likely Nano since I see no proof of it being rex.

 

[Brevicollis]

7 hours ago, Brevicollis said:

Edit : it was a coincidence, someone else bought it for themselves. Im happy for that person, he got a very nice Tyrannosauridae tooth for a good price !

It wasnt a coincidence. My father told me that he lied this morning so my mom wouldnt hear, but he bought it ! Yay, another nice tooth for the collection ! And the best part : the seller went so much down in the price that it didnt drained all of my pocket money, and for this price he sold it I dont even care if its Rex, Nano, or indet, as you wont get any of these teeth normaly for that price he sold it to us !

 

Im really happy, a nice Tyrannosauridae tooth was still missing in my collection, now I have to wait for its delivery

Edited July 10 by Brevicollis

[JorisVV]

Looks nanotyrannus like the rest said. It's a decent tooth but being not complete makes it a tad harder to really identify it.

[JoeS]

On 7/9/2024 at 11:45 PM, Brevicollis said:

Everyone is happy, as you can decide what it is. And here at home and in my friend group, no one questions it further. I know, thats not how paleontology works, but...

 

If you are still interested in a proper ID, you could provide better images and denticle counts once you receive the tooth.

[Brevicollis]

@JoeS, Yup, I'll do that !

[Brevicollis]

I heard some rumours that the tooth could arrive next week, after it should have arrived this week...

 

Edit : got some bad news, no delivery updates in weeks, it might have gone lost

Edited August 11 by Brevicollis

[Brevicollis]

@JoeS, @hadrosauridae, @North, @JorisVV, Just to let you guys know, this thread can come to an end.

 

Thanks to my favourite shipping company, which I won't tell the name of, this tooth sadly has gone lost !

[Randyw]

NOOOOOOOOO!!!!!

that’s terrible to hear…..

[hadrosauridae]

BOOOOO! that stink, sorry to hear it.

[North]

 

5 hours ago, Brevicollis said:

Thanks to my favourite shipping company, which I won't tell the name of, this tooth sadly has gone lost !

Oh no.

Did it have tracking and did they tell you it is lost? Where it was shipped from?

 

[Brevicollis]

3 hours ago, North said:

 

Oh no.

Did it have tracking and did they tell you it is lost? Where it was shipped from?

 

It was shipped from Canada, and it had tracking. But shortly after it was sent, there were no more updates on the tracking app. And then, since week ago, the item is no more findable on it. We think its gone lost, or it was sent back to the source. We had much trouble with our adress, so this could be a good reason why.

[North]

1 hour ago, Brevicollis said:

It was shipped from Canada, and it had tracking. But shortly after it was sent, there were no more updates on the tracking app. And then, since week ago, the item is no more findable on it. We think its gone lost, or it was sent back to the source. We had much trouble with our adress, so this could be a good reason why.

Never bought from Canada, but in general my US packages does not update in tracking, it switches many hands if its not more expensive option. Then it suddenly pops when it arrives to my country.

 

But it should still be visible, you could try to contact the delivery company and ask why you can no longer see your package.

[trilobites_are_awesome]

Very sorry to here this!

what a nice tooth!