PBDB Taxon

Basic info	Taxonomic history	Classification	Included Taxa
Morphology	Ecology and taphonomy	External Literature Search	Age range and collections

Heterodontosauridae (heterodontosaurid)

Reptilia - Heterodontosauridae

Taxonomy

Heterodontosauridae was named by Romer (1966). Its type is Heterodontosaurus. It was considered monophyletic by Sereno (2012).

It was assigned to Dolichopoda by Thulborn (1974), Thulborn (1977); to Ornitophoda by Bonaparte (1978); to Hypsilophodontia by Russell (1984); to Ornithischia by Ellenberger (1970), Santa Luca (1980), Olsen and Galton (1984), Maryanska and Osmólska (1985); to Ornithopoda by Bakker (1986); to Heterodontosauria by Rozhdestvensky (1977), Cooper (1985), Olshevsky and Ford (1994); to Ornithopoda by Smith (1997); to Chasmatopia by Buchholz (2002); to Heterodontosauriformes by Xu et al. (2006); to Ornithopoda by Kuhn (1966), Romer (1966), Galton (1972), Galton (1974), Galton (1974), Anderson and Cruickshank (1978), Thuborn (1978), Benton (1979), Ostrom (1980), Colbert (1981), Weishampel and Weishampel (1983), Galton (1983), Buscalioni and Sanz (1984), Norman (1984), Battail (1986), Carroll (1988), Norman (1989), Benton (1990), Weishampel and Witmer (1990), Sereno (1997), Sereno (1998), Sereno (1999), Norman et al. (2004), Chure et al. (2006), Galton (2007); and to Ornithischia by Knoll (2005), Sánchez-Hernández et al. (2007), Butler et al. (2007), Butler et al. (2008), Zheng et al. (2009), Han et al. (2012), Sereno (2012), Madzia et al. (2018), Herne et al. (2019).

Subtaxa

Echinodon, Geranosaurus, Geranosaurus atavus, Heterodontosaurinae, Manidens, Pegomastax

Synonyms

Geranosaurus was named by Broom (1911). Its type is Geranosaurus atavus.

It was considered a nomen dubium by Thulborn (1974); it was considered a nomen dubium by Thuborn (1978); it was considered a nomen dubium by Weishampel and Witmer (1990); it was considered a nomen dubium by Norman et al. (2004), Knoll (2005), Butler et al. (2008), Norman et al. (2011), Sereno (2012).

It was assigned to Predentata by Broom (1911), Broom (1913); to Hypsilophodontinae by Nopcsa (1928); to Orthopoda by Huene (1940); to Ornithopoda by Ellenberger and Ellenberger (1960); to Ornithischia by Huene (1914), Haughton (1924), Crompton and Charig (1962); to Scelidosauridae by Ellenberger (1970); to Hypsilophodontidae by Lull (1924), Haughton and Brink (1954), Romer (1956), Tatarinov (1964), Kuhn (1964), Simmons (1965), Romer (1966), Swinton (1970), Thulborn (1972); and to Heterodontosauridae by Galton (1972), Galton (1974), Galton (1974), Anderson and Cruickshank (1978), Colbert (1981), Weishampel and Weishampel (1983), Olsen and Galton (1984), Battail (1986), Carroll (1988), Olshevsky and Ford (1994).
Geranosaurus atavus was named by Broom (1911). Its type specimen is SAM 1871, a mandible, and it is a 3D body fossil. Its type locality is farm Tulloch, Barkly Pass (zone B/5), which is in a Sinemurian terrestrial sandstone in the Clarens Formation of South Africa. It is the type species of Geranosaurus.

It was considered a nomen dubium by Thulborn (1974); it was considered a nomen dubium by Thuborn (1978); it was considered a nomen dubium by Weishampel and Witmer (1990); it was considered a nomen dubium by Norman et al. (2004), Butler et al. (2008), Norman et al. (2011), Sereno (2012).
Lycorhinidae was named by Thulborn (1971). Its type is Lycorhinus.

It was synonymized subjectively with Heterodontosauridae by Charig and Crompton (1974).

It was assigned to Ornithischia by Thulborn (1971).

Synonymy list

Year	Name and author
1911	Geranosaurus Broom
1911	Geranosaurus atavus Broom
1911	Geranosaurus Broom pp. 306-307
1911	Geranosaurus atavus Broom pp. 306-307
1913	Geranosaurus Broom p. 364
1913	Geranosaurus atavus Broom p. 364
1914	Geranosaurus Huene p. 16
1914	Geranosaurus atavus Huene p. 16
1924	Geranosaurus Haughton
1924	Geranosaurus atavus Haughton
1924	Geranosaurus Lull p. 238
1928	Geranosaurus Nopcsa p. 184
1936	Geranosaurus atavus Swinton p. 572
1940	Geranosaurus Huene p. 263
1940	Geranosaurus atavus Huene p. 263
1954	Geranosaurus Haughton and Brink p. 4
1954	Geranosaurus atavus Haughton and Brink p. 38
1956	Geranosaurus Romer p. 628
1960	Geranosaurus Ellenberger and Ellenberger p. 237
1962	Geranosaurus Crompton and Charig pp. 1074-1075
1962	Geranosaurus atavus Crompton and Charig pp. 1074-1075
1964	Geranosaurus Kuhn p. 6
1964	Geranosaurus atavus Kuhn p. 6
1964	Geranosaurus Tatarinov p. 555
1965	Geranosaurus Simmons p. 68
1965	Geranosaurus atavus Simmons p. 68
1966	Heterodontosauridae Kuhn p. 101
1966	Geranosaurus Romer p. 370
1966	Heterodontosauridae Romer p. 370
1970	Heterodontosauridae Ellenberger p. 348
1970	Geranosaurus Ellenberger p. 350
1970	Geranosaurus atavus Ellenberger p. 350
1970	Geranosaurus Swinton p. 196
1971	Lycorhinidae Thulborn p. 76 fig. 4
1972	Geranosaurus Galton p. 466
1972	Heterodontosauridae Galton p. 466
1972	Geranosaurus Thulborn p. 57
1974	Geranosaurus Galton p. 150
1974	Heterodontosauridae Galton pp. 150-151
1974	Geranosaurus Galton p. 1064 fig. 6
1974	Heterodontosauridae Galton p. 1064 fig. 6
1974	Heterodontosauridae Thulborn p. 153
1975	Geranosaurus atavus Thulborn p. 129
1977	Heterodontosauridae Rozhdestvensky p. 113
1977	Heterodontosauridae Thulborn p. 737
1978	Geranosaurus Anderson and Cruickshank p. 31
1978	Heterodontosauridae Anderson and Cruickshank p. 31
1978	Heterodontosauridae Bonaparte p. 331
1978	Heterodontosauridae Thuborn p. 187
1979	Heterodontosauridae Benton p. 143
1980	Heterodontosauridae Ostrom p. 22
1980	Heterodontosauridae Santa Luca p. 197
1981	Geranosaurus Colbert p. 50
1981	Heterodontosauridae Colbert p. 50
1983	Heterodontosauridae Galton p. 6
1983	Geranosaurus Weishampel and Weishampel p. 44
1983	Geranosaurus atavus Weishampel and Weishampel p. 44
1983	Heterodontosauridae Weishampel and Weishampel p. 44
1984	Heterosontosauridae Buscalioni and Sanz p. 13
1984	Heterodontosauridae Norman pp. 160-161 fig. 2
1984	Geranosaurus Olsen and Galton p. 91
1984	Geranosaurus atavus Olsen and Galton p. 91
1984	Heterodontosauridae Olsen and Galton p. 91
1984	Heterodontosauridae Russell p. 29
1985	Heterodontosauridae Cooper p. 290
1985	Heterodontosauridae Maryanska and Osmólska p. 142 fig. 1
1986	Heterodontosauridae Bakker p. 461
1986	Geranosaurus Battail p. 50
1986	Heterodontosauridae Battail p. 50
1988	Geranosaurus Carroll
1988	Heterodontosauridae Carroll
1989	Heterodontosauridae Norman p. 60
1990	Heterodontosauridae Benton p. 19
1990	Heterodontosauridae Weishampel and Witmer p. 487
1994	Geranosaurus Olshevsky and Ford p. 91
1994	Geranosaurus atavus Olshevsky and Ford p. 91
1994	Heterodontosauridae Olshevsky and Ford p. 91
1997	Heterodontosauridae Sereno p. 443
1997	Heterodontosauridae Smith p. 317
1998	Heterodontosauridae Sereno p. 61
1999	Heterodontosauridae Sereno p. 2138 fig. 2
2002	Heterodontosauridae Buchholz p. 20
2004	Heterodontosauridae Norman et al. p. 394
2005	Heterodontosauridae Knoll p. 85
2006	Heterodontosauridae Chure et al. p. 237
2006	Heterodontosauridae Xu et al. p. 2139 fig. 3
2007	Heterodontosauridae Butler et al. p. 2044
2007	Heterodontosauridae Galton p. 26
2007	Heterodontosauridae Sánchez-Hernández et al. p. 200
2008	Heterodontosauridae Butler et al. p. 18 figs. 2-4
2009	Heterodontosauridae Zheng et al. p. 333
2012	Heterodontosauridae Han et al. p. 1391 fig. 14
2012	Heterodontosauridae Sereno pp. 29-30
2018	Heterodontosauridae Madzia et al. p. 973 fig. 4
2019	Heterodontosauridae Herne et al. p. 574 fig. 25

Is something missing? Join the Paleobiology Database and enter the data

Rank	Name	Author
kingdom	Animalia	()
—	Bilateria
—	Eubilateria	Ax 1987
—	Deuterostomia
phylum	Chordata	Haeckel 1874
subphylum	Vertebrata
superclass	Gnathostomata
—	Osteichthyes	()
subclass	Sarcopterygii	()
subclass	Dipnotetrapodomorpha	(Nelson 2006)
subclass	Tetrapodomorpha	()
—	Tetrapoda
—	Reptiliomorpha
—	Anthracosauria
subclass	Amphibiosauria	Kuhn 1967
—	Cotylosauria	()
—	Amniota
—	Sauropsida

Rank	Name	Author
class	Reptilia
subclass	Eureptilia	()
—	Romeriida
—	Diapsida	()
—	Archosauromorpha	(Huene 1946)
—	Crocopoda
—	Archosauriformes	Gauthier 1986
—	Eucrocopoda
—	Archosauria	()
informal	Avemetatarsalia
—	Ornithodira
—	Dinosauromorpha
—	Dinosauriformes
—	Dinosauria	()
—	Ornithischia	()
family	Heterodontosauridae
family	Heterodontosauridae

If no rank is listed, the taxon is considered an unranked clade in modern classifications. Ranks may be repeated or presented in the wrong order because authors working on different parts of the classification may disagree about how to rank taxa.

Fm. †Heterodontosauridae Romer 1966 [heterodontosaurid]

show all | hide all

G. †Echinodon Owen 1861

hide

†Echinodon becklesii Owen 1861

Subfm. †Heterodontosaurinae Sereno 2012

hide

G. †Abrictosaurus Hopson 1975

†Abrictosaurus consors Thulborn 1974

G. †Fruitadens Butler et al. 2010

†Fruitadens haagarorum Butler et al. 2010

G. †Heterodontosaurus Crompton and Charig 1962

†Heterodontosaurus tucki Crompton and Charig 1962

G. †Lycorhinus Haughton 1924

†Lycorhinus angustidens Haughton 1924

Invalid names: Lanasaurus scalpridens Gow 1975 [synonym]

†Lycorhinus parvidens Broom

Invalid names: Lanasaurus Gow 1975 [synonym]

G. †Manidens Pol et al. 2011

hide

†Manidens condorensis Pol et al. 2011

G. †Pegomastax Sereno 2012

hide

†Pegomastax africanus Sereno 2012

Invalid names: Geranosaurus Broom 1911 [nomen dubium], Geranosaurus atavus Broom 1911 [nomen dubium], Lycorhinidae Thulborn 1971 [synonym]

Diagnosis

Reference	Diagnosis
P. M. Galton 1972	Inset cheek teeth with planar wear surfaces, large caniniiform tooth on premaxilla and on dentary, rudimentary anterior process to publs.
P. C. Sereno 2012	Small-bodied ornithischians with the following features that may constitute heterodontosaurid synapomorphies in phylogenetic context: (1) three or fewer premaxillary teeth; (2) premaxillary teeth increase in size distally; (3) dentary caniniform tooth associated with an arched premaxilla-maxilla diastema; (4) nasal fossa, dorsomedian with rounded lateral margins; (5) jugal flange, ventral embayment of jugal-quadratojugal embayment; (6) jugal horn below orbit, laterally directed and dorsoventrally compressed; (7) postorbital body, arcuate fossa with raised anterior rim; (8) quadrate head included within laterotemporal fossa; (9) quadrate condyle, articular surface ventrolaterally in- clined at approximately 30°; (10) quadratojugal T-shaped; (11) predentary processes (lat- eral, ventral) rudimentary; (12) dentary ramus stoutly proportioned, substantial depth at mid ramus compared to length; (13) fibular mid-shaft and distal end reduced.

Measurements

No measurements are available

Composition:

hydroxyapatiteo

Entire body:

yeso

Adult length:

10 to < 100o

Adult width:

1.0 to < 10o

Adult height:

1.0 to < 10o

Maximum body mass:

3 kgg

Minimum body mass:

300 gg

Architecture:

compact or denseo

Ontogeny:

accretion, modification of partso

Grouping:

gregariouso

Environment:

terrestrialo

Locomotion:

actively mobileo

Life habit:

ground dwellingo

Diet:

herbivoreo

Reproduction:

oviparouso

Dispersal:

direct/internalo

Dispersal 2:

mobileo

Created:

2004-12-14 12:50:52

Modified:

2004-12-14 14:50:52

Source: g = genus, o = order

References: Marsh 1875, Peczkis 1995

Age range: base of the Norian to the top of the Early/Lower Barremian or 227.30000 to 121.40000 Ma

Collections (30 total)

Time interval	Ma	Country or state	Original ID and collection number
Norian	227.3 - 205.7	Argentina (Santa Cruz)	Heterodontosauria indet. (139580)
Hettangian - Sinemurian	201.4 - 192.9	South Africa (Eastern Cape)	Heterodontosauridae indet., Heterodontosaurus tucki, Heterodontosauridae indet. (85486) Heterodontosaurus tucki (49394 224194) Lycorhinus angustidens (36669 69696) Lycorhinus angustifrons (137299)
Hettangian - Sinemurian	201.4 - 192.9	Lesotho (Qacha's Nek)	Heterodontosauridae indet. (137298) Lycorhinus consors (69695)
Hettangian - Sinemurian	201.4 - 192.9	South Africa (Free State)	Lanasaurus scalpridens (48828)
Sinemurian	199.5 - 192.9	South Africa (Eastern Cape)	Geranosaurus atavus (36703) Heterodontosaurus tucki (59339)
Sinemurian - Pliensbachian	199.5 - 184.2	South Africa (Free State)	Heterodontosaurus sp. (232327)
Sinemurian - Pliensbachian	199.5 - 184.2	USA (Arizona)	Heterodontosauridae indet. (27716)
Pliensbachian	192.9 - 184.2	Lesotho (Mafeteng)	Lycorhinus sp. (137297)
Pliensbachian	192.9 - 184.2	Mexico (Tamaulipas)	Heterodontosaurus sp. (136967)
Middle Toarcian - Late/Upper Toarcian	182.9 - 174.7	Argentina (Chubut)	Heterodontosauridae indet., Manidens condorensis (67434)
Bathonian	168.2 - 165.3	Russian Federation (Krasnoyarsk)	Heterodontosauridae indet. (61891)
Late/Upper Kimmeridgian - Early/Lower Tithonian	152.21 - 145.06	USA (Colorado)	Echinodon sp. (53021)
Early/Lower Tithonian	149.2 - 145.06	USA (Colorado)	Fabrosauridae indet. (71476) Fruitadens haagarorum (92360)
Early/Lower Tithonian	149.2 - 145.06	USA (Utah)	Fruitadens sp. (191718)
Tithonian	149.2 - 143.1	USA (Colorado)	Fabrosauridae indet. (53040)
Early/Lower Berriasian - Middle Berriasian	143.1 - 139.1	France (Poitou-Charentes)	Heterodontosauridae indet. (61930)
Early/Lower Berriasian - Middle Berriasian	143.1 - 139.1	United Kingdom (England)	Echinodon becklesii (28401)
Berriasian	143.1 - 137.05	France (Poitou-Charentes)	Heterodontosauridae indet., Echinoidea indet. (142093)
Middle Berriasian	141.0 - 139.1	United Kingdom (England)	Echinodon becklesii (45330) Echinodon sp., Echinodon becklesii (52312)
Early/Lower Barremian	125.77 - 121.4	Spain (Teruel)	Echinodon sp. (36365)
Early/Lower Barremian	125.77 - 121.4	Spain (Aragón)	Heterodontosauridae indet. (89275)