Eopinacosaurus & Pinacosaurus hilwitnorum, new ankylosaur genus and new species from Late Cretaceous
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Ben Creisler
May 12, 2026, 11:21:20 AM (5 days ago) May 12
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Ben Creisler
A new paper:
Pinacosaurus hilwitnorum sp. nov.
Eopinacosaurus mephistocephalus gen. nov. for ‘Pinacosaurus’ mephistocephalus
Paul Penkalski (2026)
The morphology and systematics of Pinacosaurus
Historical Biology (advance online publication)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2026.2633178
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08912963.2026.2633178
https://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:86C07FDB-D024-4198-8794-9E61DA5C6252
The recovery in recent years of dozens of new specimens of the armoured dinosaur Pinacosaurus allows a re-evaluation of this important Late Cretaceous taxon. The holotype of Pinacosaurus grangeri consists of a badly crushed skull, mandibles, and fragmentary cervical material. Here it is redescribed in light of what is presently known about ankylosaurids. Pinacosaurus sensu stricto is characterised by several unusual features including a supranarial embayment, a nasoprefrontal pyramid, multiple paranasal apertures, and a lack of osteoderms or caputegulae in the frontoparietal region. The occipital condyle is reniform as in most or all other ankylosaurids, with fusion of the exoccipital condyloids occurring ontogenetically. Other specimens from the same locality as the holotype, Bayn Dzak, also represent P. grangeri. Site-specific and/or horizon-specific morphs characterise Bayn Dzak, Ukhaa Tolgod, Alag Teeg, and other localities, suggesting multiple species of Pinacosaurus. A limited specimen-level cladistic analysis confirms that: (1) some Pinacosaurus sensu stricto specimens are distinct from P. grangeri and represent a second species, P. hilwitnorum, sp. nov.; (2) ‘Pinacosaurus’ mephistocephalus is not referable to Pinacosaurus and therefore requires a new generic name, Eopinacosaurus, gen. nov.; and (3) Minotaurasaurus is probably distinct from Pinacosaurus (and is not Tarchia). The diversity and distribution of Pinacosaurus is a key to understanding the spatiotemporal relationships among Late Cretaceous Gobi Basin localities.
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Pinacosaurus hilwitnorum sp. nov.
Eopinacosaurus mephistocephalus gen. nov. for ‘Pinacosaurus’ mephistocephalus
Paul Penkalski (2026)
The morphology and systematics of Pinacosaurus
Historical Biology (advance online publication)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1080/08912963.2026.2633178
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/08912963.2026.2633178
https://zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:pub:86C07FDB-D024-4198-8794-9E61DA5C6252
The recovery in recent years of dozens of new specimens of the armoured dinosaur Pinacosaurus allows a re-evaluation of this important Late Cretaceous taxon. The holotype of Pinacosaurus grangeri consists of a badly crushed skull, mandibles, and fragmentary cervical material. Here it is redescribed in light of what is presently known about ankylosaurids. Pinacosaurus sensu stricto is characterised by several unusual features including a supranarial embayment, a nasoprefrontal pyramid, multiple paranasal apertures, and a lack of osteoderms or caputegulae in the frontoparietal region. The occipital condyle is reniform as in most or all other ankylosaurids, with fusion of the exoccipital condyloids occurring ontogenetically. Other specimens from the same locality as the holotype, Bayn Dzak, also represent P. grangeri. Site-specific and/or horizon-specific morphs characterise Bayn Dzak, Ukhaa Tolgod, Alag Teeg, and other localities, suggesting multiple species of Pinacosaurus. A limited specimen-level cladistic analysis confirms that: (1) some Pinacosaurus sensu stricto specimens are distinct from P. grangeri and represent a second species, P. hilwitnorum, sp. nov.; (2) ‘Pinacosaurus’ mephistocephalus is not referable to Pinacosaurus and therefore requires a new generic name, Eopinacosaurus, gen. nov.; and (3) Minotaurasaurus is probably distinct from Pinacosaurus (and is not Tarchia). The diversity and distribution of Pinacosaurus is a key to understanding the spatiotemporal relationships among Late Cretaceous Gobi Basin localities.
Gregory Paul
May 13, 2026, 8:00:25 AM (4 days ago) May 13
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Might anyone have a PDF of this here paper?
GSPaul
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