New species of iguanodontian dinosaur discovered from Isle of Wight


Date:
November 11, 2021
Source:
Taylor & Francis Group
Summary:
Discoveries of iguanodontian dinosaurs from the Isle of Wight have
previously only been assigned to Iguanodon or Mantellisaurus . The
diversity of dinosaurs in the Early Cretaceous of the UK is much
greater than previously thought.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Scientists from the Natural History Museum and University of Portsmouth
have described a new genus and species of dinosaur from a specimen found
on the Isle of Wight.


========================================================================== Following on from a new species of ankylosaur, new species of therapodand
two new speciesof spinosaur dinosaurs, Brighstoneus simmondsi is the
latest in a host of new dinosaur species described by Museum scientists
in recent weeks.

The new dinosaur is an iguanodontian, a group that also includes the
iconic Iguanodon and Mantellisaurus. Until now, iguanodontian material
found from the Wealden Group (representing part of the Early Cretaceous
period) on the Isle of Wight has usually been referred to as one of these
two dinosaurs -- with more gracile fossil bones assigned to Mantellisaurus
and the larger and more robust material assigned to Iguanodon.

However, when Dr Jeremy Lockwood -- a PhD student at the Museum and
University of Portsmouth -- was examining the specimen, he came across
several unique traits that distinguished it from either of these other dinosaurs.

'For me, the number of teeth was a sign' Dr Lockwood says. 'Mantellisaurus
has 23 or 24, but this has 28. It also had a bulbous nose, whereas
the other species have very straight noses. Altogether, these and
other small differences made it very obviously a new species.' The
herbivorous dinosaur was about eight metres in length and weighed about
900kg. Published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Systematic Palaeontology,
Dr Lockwood describes the species and names itBrighstoneus simmondsi: Brighstoneus after the village of Brighstone, near to the excavation site,
and simmondsihonouring Mr Keith Simmonds, who made the discovery of the specimen in 1978.

The discovery of this new species suggests that there were far more iguanodontian dinosaurs in the Early Cretaceous of the UK than previously thought, and that simply assigning specimens from this period to either Iguanodon or Mantellisaurusmust change.

'We're looking at six, maybe seven million years of deposits, and I
think the genus lengths have been overestimated in the past, 'says Dr
Lockwood. 'If that's the case on the island, we could be seeing many
more new species. It seems so unlikely to just have two animals being
exactly the same for millions of years without change.' Museum scientist
Dr Susannah Maidment, a co-author of the paper, says: 'The describing
of this new species shows that there is clearly a greater diversity of iguanodontian dinosaurs in the Early Cretaceous of the UK than previously realised. It's also showing that the century-old paradigm that gracile iguanodontian bones found on the island belong to Mantellisaurus and
large elements belong to Iguanodon can no longer be substantiated'.

The Isle of Wight has long been associated with dinosaur discovery,
and even yielded the crucial specimens that led to Sir Richard
Owen to coin the term Dinosauria. The authors conclude that the
describing of Brighstoneus simmondsias a new species calls for
a reassessment of Isle of Wight material: 'British dinosaurs
are certainly not something that's done and dusted at all,' says
Dr Lockwood. 'I think we could be on to a bit of a renaissance.' ========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Taylor_&_Francis_Group. Note:
Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Jeremy A. F. Lockwood, David M. Martill, Susannah C. R. Maidment. A
new
hadrosauriform dinosaur from the Wessex Formation, Wealden
Group (Early Cretaceous), of the Isle of Wight, southern
England. Journal of Systematic Palaeontology, 2021; 1 DOI:
10.1080/14772019.2021.1978005 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/11/211111075443.htm

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