Mochlodon
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Name Meaning | “bar tooth” |
| Location | Austria, Hungary (?) |
| Time Period | c. 83 million years ago (Late Cretaceous) |
| Length | 10 ft (3 m) |
| Weight | 90 lb (41 kg) |
| Locomotion | Biped |
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Described | 1881 (Seeley) |
| Geological Formation(s) | Grünbach, Csehbánya (?) |
| Valid Species | Mochlodon suessi (type), Mochlodon vorosi (?) |
Phylogeny: Dinosauria > Ornithischia > Genasauria > Neornithischia > Cerapoda > Ornithopoda > Iguanodontia > Rhabdodontomorpha > Rhabdodontoidea > Rhabdodontidae
Overview: Fossils now referred to the genus Mochlodon were first discovered in the late 1850’s, in an Austrian coal mine. Some more partial remains were collected at the site by researchers, mainly consisting of jaw material, teeth, some limb bones, and a couple vertebrae. In the 1870’s, the fossils were referred to the genus Iguanodon as a new species – Iguanodon suessi. The specific name was chosen in honor of the Austrian geologist Eduard Suess, who helped secure its remains. Later, this classification was called into question, with other researchers noting many differences between its remains and those of Iguanodon. In 1881, Mochlodon was officially described as a distinct genus by the British paleontologist Harry G. Seeley. Its generic name, meaning “bar tooth”, was chosen in reference to a prominent bar-like ridge running along the surface of some of its cheek teeth. Such teeth suggest it may’ve eaten fairly tough vegetation, but we can be certain.
Many later studies would associate Mochlodon with the genus Rhabdodon, often finding the two to be the same genus. Nowadays, they are recognized as distinct, but also as most likely related. Both are usually classified in the family Rhabdodontidae, which largely contains smaller, mainly bipedal iguanodonts from the Late Cretaceous. Rhabdodontids usually had large teeth and fairly deep jaws. Fossils of these animals are fairly common all across Europe. Mochlodon itself grew to be about three meters long, which is average-sized for a rhabdodontid. Some fossils referred to it, however, may not be those of a rhabdodontid at all. In 2012, a second species of Mochlodon was described, Mochlodon vorosi, but this may actually be based on the fossils of a ceratopsian genus called Ajkaceratops. Fossils of some other rhabdodontid species have been recently reclassified as having come from ceratopsians, including a species once referred to the related Zalmoxes.