Abstraktum Posted January 1, 2019 Share Posted January 1, 2019 Hello everybody so while browsing the web looking for fossils I stumble upon lots of onlineshops and auctionsides offering single bones. And I'm always like "how do they know the species/genus?" This is not about whether I buy these Vertebrae or not. And not just about the identification of theses specific vertebrae, but more on the concept of trying to identify single bones using these Vertebrae as an example. Let's give it a go: 1) Offered as a Caudal Vertebrae from Camarasaurus grandis, 10.7″. Age: Upper Jurassic Location: Salt & Pepper Quarry, East Of Dinosaur, Colorado. Formation: Brushy Basin Member, Morrison Formation 2) Offered as a Caudal Vertebrae from Camarasaurus grandis, 12.6″. Age: Upper Jurassic Location: Sutton Quarry, East Of Dinosaur, Colorado. Formation: Brushy Basin Member, Morrison Formation 3) Offered as a Tail Vertebrae from Camarasaurus, 5″ wide x 6 3/4″ Age: Jurassic Location: Wyoming Formation: Morrison Formation 4) Offered as a Vertebrae from Camarasaurus, 5 3/4″ x 9 1/4″ Age: Jurassic Location: Wyoming Formation: Morrison Formation So what did I do? I tried google search for images of a Camarasaurus skeleton. Didn't finde the best picutres though. After looking at this my best guess is that it from the "later" (sorry, don't know the correct english word, marked red) part of the tail. Then I tried to find possible candidates for this bone. CLICK (yep, just wikipedia... but I don't know any scientific papers to search) There are a lot of Sauropod in the Morrison Formation in Colorado and Wyoming, so I honestly don't know if it's possible to name them Camarasaurus. For my uneducated eye this could literally be any Dinosaur Verbetrae. I do know Troodons topic about Dinosaur Anatomy, but it didn't really help me at that point. So my question is: What is your way on identifying single bones and what is the best way to do it? Any help is welcome, thank you so much 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TyBoy Posted January 1, 2019 Share Posted January 1, 2019 Its not easy on isolated bones not everything is published or known. Sellers tend to put known species in their offerings even when multiple similar ones exist, they are typically clueless and one cannot believe what is offered. Ive found that technical Osteology papers and books are the best source. Troodons guide on books is a good source. Among those Ive picked up the Allosaurus and Ceratosaurus guides and they are good for Jurassic. Staying with Jurassic here is a couple Ive found. Britt, B., 1991, "Theropods of Dry Mesa Quarry (Morrison Formation, Late Jurassic), Colorado, with emphasis on the osteology of Torvosaurus tanneri", Brigham Young University Geology Studies 37: 1-72 McIntosh, J. S.; Miller, W. E.; Stadtman, K. L.; Gillette, D. D. (1996). "The Osteology of Camarasaurus lewisi (Jensen, 1988)". Brigham Young University Geology Studies. 41: 73–95. Fruitbat's library in this forum is a great source 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Abstraktum Posted January 2, 2019 Author Share Posted January 2, 2019 Thank you for these book tips, will try to grab some of the books Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBchiefski Posted January 2, 2019 Share Posted January 2, 2019 As a general rule, a single bone is not adequate to ID down to the species level, however certain bones for some clades can be given a solid ID. Just a single maxilla in decent shape can ID tyrannosaurids to one species or a scapula in many sauropods can be enough to ID the species. There are other examples but again, the general rule is that an isolated bone cannot be given so precise an ID. Just use caution unless there are many associated elements and even then, I would remain skeptical. @Abstraktum 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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