Torvosaurus tanneri Galton and Jensen, 1979

Rauhut, Oliver W. M., 2003, The interrelationships and evolution of basal theropod dinosaurs, Special papers in palaeontology 69, pp. 1-213 : 28

Torvosaurus tanneri Galton and Jensen, 1979

Age . Kimmeridgian-Tithonian.

Occurrence. Morrison Formation, Colorado,?Wyoming,?Utah, USA.

Diagnosis. Opisthocoelous cervical vertebrae with a pronounced flat rim around the anterior ball; fenestra in neural arch of dorsal vertebrae in front of hyposphene.

Remarks. Torvosaurus is one of the most recent species to be recognized as a distinct taxon of theropod dinosaur from the Late Jurassic Morrison Formation. The original type material included the long bones of a left and right forelimb from the Dry Mesa Quarry of western Colorado to which a dentary and a variety of postcranial elements from the same locality were referred (Galton and Jensen 1979). More material from the same quarry was referred to Torvosaurus by Jensen (1985) and Britt (1991). Britt (1991, p. 10) noted that the elements of the type were not found in association and designated the left humerus as the lectotype. The species Edmarka rex , described on the basis of fragmentary material from the Morrison Formation of Wyoming (Bakker et al. 1992), probably represents a junior synonym of Torvosaurus (Sues, pers. comm. 1998).