Open Paleo

Paulodon

Sancarlo et al., 2025 PAWL-oh-don

Named in honor of iguanodont researcher Gregory S. Paul, plus Greek odon ("tooth") in keeping with the Iguanodontia naming convention.

125.8–121.4 million years ago Barremian, Early Cretaceous
Early Cretaceous stages

Paulodon is a genus of iguanodontian dinosaur from the early Barremian (Early Cretaceous) of Galve in Teruel, Spain. It was erected by Sancarlo, Mandorlo and Ford (2025) for material previously described as Iguanodon galvensis by Verdú and colleagues (2015).

Under dispute

Paulodon's separation from Iguanodon is supported by Sancarlo and colleagues (2025), who erected it, and independently by Rotatori and colleagues (2026), who remove 'I.' galvensis from Iguanodon and regard it as needing a new generic name within Iguanodontidae, without citing Paulodon. They disagree on its placement: Sancarlo and colleagues recover it closer to Proa and Lanzhousaurus than to Iguanodon, Rotatori and colleagues in an Iberian clade with Magnamanus and Delapparentia.

Diagnosis

  1. Manus with fully separated digits.
  2. Pollex proportionally short and conical with pronounced medial curvature, articulating with a low and broad metacarpal I.
  3. Rugose, inflated ridge on the lateral side of the femur shaft near the lateral condyle.
  4. Lateral trochanter of the femur forms a bony spur.
  5. Prominent tuberosity on the articular surface of the iliac peduncle of the ischium.
  6. Ischiatic peduncle forms a step on the lateral face of the ilium.
  7. Distal end of the ischium D-shaped in cross section, with a rounded expansion 0.45-0.50 the proximal width.
  8. Dentary with a short, abrupt convexity on the dorsal margin near the symphyseal region.

Species

Paulodon galvensis (Verdú et al., 2015)

Type species

First named as Iguanodon galvensis

From galvensis ("of Galve"), referring to Galve in Teruel Province, Aragón, Spain — the locality of the type material.

Holotype
MAP-4787 , Museo de la Fundación Conjunto Paleontológico de Teruel-Dinópolis
Material
Adult specimen with disarticulated cranial and postcranial elements — premaxilla, dentary, postorbital, quadrate, maxillary teeth, atlas arch, cervical and sacral vertebrae, ribs, coracoid, scapula, pubes, ischia, and right femur.
Horizon
Camarillas Formation, Barremian, Early Cretaceous , 125.8–121.4 million years ago
Locality
San Cristóbal 1 (SC-1), SIBELCO EUROPE clay mine, Galve, Teruel, Spain

Synonyms

  • Iguanodon galvensis reassigned

    Originally described as Iguanodon galvensis by Verdú and colleagues (2015) and revised by Verdú and colleagues (2017); reassigned to a new genus Paulodon by Sancarlo, Mandorlo and Ford (2025) on autapomorphies of the manus, pollex, femur, ischium, and dentary plus a stratigraphic gap (early Barremian vs. late-Barremian-early-Aptian Iguanodon bernissartensis).

References

  1. Sancarlo, F.; Mandorlo, D.; Ford, T. L. (2025). Reassessment of Iguanodon galvensis classification. Mesozoic 2(4): 302-312. doi:10.11646/mesozoic.2.4.3

    Erects Paulodon for Iguanodon galvensis on autapomorphies of the manus, pollex, femur, ischium and dentary; phylogeny places it closer to Proa and Lanzhousaurus than to Iguanodon.

    sancarlo2025a
  2. Verdú, F. J.; Royo-Torres, R.; Cobos, A.; Alcalá, L. (2015). Perinates of a new species of Iguanodon (Ornithischia: Ornithopoda) from the lower Barremian of Galve (Teruel, Spain). Cretaceous Research 56: 250-264. doi:10.1016/j.cretres.2015.05.010

    Original description of Iguanodon galvensis on the MAP-4787 adult plus 13 perinate (very young juvenile) specimens from the SC-2 nursery site near Galve.

    verdú2015a
  3. Verdú, F. J.; Royo-Torres, R.; Cobos, A.; Alcalá, L. (2017). New systematic and phylogenetic data about the early Barremian Iguanodon galvensis (Ornithopoda: Iguanodontoidea) from Spain. Historical Biology 30(4): 437-474. doi:10.1080/08912963.2017.1287179

    Emended diagnosis adds two new autapomorphies (iliac-peduncle tuberosity, lateral femoral ridge); keeps the species within Iguanodon and does not propose a new genus.

    verdú2017a
  4. Rotatori, F. M.; Chiarenza, A. A.; Fanti, F.; Moreno-Azanza, M. (2026). The early origin of Iguanodontia: new insights into the macroevolution, diversity and biogeography of the clade. Palaeontology 69(2): e70057. doi:10.1111/pala.70057

    Independently calls for a new generic name for "I." galvensis within Iguanodontidae but does not mention or endorse Sancarlo and colleagues' Paulodon.

    rotatori2026a