New cranial material of the rare diadectid Desmatodon hesperis (Diadectomorpha) from the late Pennsylvanian of central Colorado

Abstract

Additional skull and lower jaw material of the rare diadectid Desmatodon hesperis is described from the Late Pennsylvanian Badger Creek locality in the Sangre de Cristo Formation of central Colorado. A new partial maxilla suggests that the more primitive degree of molarization of the cheek teeth may actually reflect a different in maturity rather than a taxonomic character. The new material further demonstrates that the cranial morphologies of D. hesperis and Diadectes are nearly alike, with only the marginal and palatal dentitions providing a substantial means for distinguishing between them. Previously described differences between the maxillary dentitions in juvenile and adult stages of growth are further documented. -from Authors