Anatosaurus
ah-NAT-oh-SORE-us /əˌnætəˈsɔːrəs/
Synonym of Edmontosaurus
duck lizard
- anas / anat- · Latin · duck
- sauros · Greek · lizard
The name combines the Latin word for "duck" with the Greek word for "lizard". It was chosen because the animal was a duck-billed dinosaur (a hadrosaur) with a broad, flattened, duck-like beak. It is now considered the same animal as Edmontosaurus, so the name is no longer used.
- Named by
- Lull and Wright
- Year named
- 1942
- Period
- Late Cretaceous
- Stage
- Maastrichtian
- Found in
- Western North America, including the Lance and Hell Creek formations (e.g. Wyoming, Montana, South Dakota, USA)
Anatosaurus is a junior synonym of Edmontosaurus. Its species are generally treated as Edmontosaurus annectens (and related Edmontosaurus species). The name is still seen in older books and popular literature.