Description
- Carinodens belgicus
- EXTREMELY RARE MOSASAURINAE
- Upper Cretaceous, Maastrichtian stage, (~66 Million Years)
- Ouled Abdoun Basin (Phosphate beds)
- Oued Zem, Morocco
- North Africa
- This EXTREMELY RARE tooth measures .53″ long x .69″ wide and will come in a 3.25″ x 4.25″ Riker Mount with Label as Shown
- More Mosasaurus Fossils for Sale
Carinodens is an extinct genus of Cretaceous marine lizard belonging to the mosasaur family. “Carinodens” means “keel teeth”. It was named in 1969 as a replacement name for Compressidens, “compressed teeth”, which was already in use for a gadilidan scaphopod mollusk. Carinodens measured approximately 3.5 metres (11.5 ft) in length and is one of the smallest known mosasaurs.
Carinodens was closely related to Globidens, though is scantly known in comparison. The holotype specimen consists of an incomplete right dentary and most subsequently referred fossils are isolated teeth. The holotype dentary only preserves the posterior most teeth. Until recently when more comprehensive material was recovered, most of the dentition of the genus (its most distinctive feature) was unknown.
Carinodens can easily be distinguished from the closely related Globidens by the compressed nature of its teeth and its relatively delicate dentary.
