Orthomerus

straight thigh / straight femur

• orthos · Greek · straight
• meros · Greek · thigh / thigh bone (femur)

Orthomerus is built from the Greek words 'orthos' (straight) and 'meros' (thigh or thigh bone). The name refers to the notably straight femur of the animal, which was considered a distinguishing feature of the specimen. It was coined to highlight this skeletal characteristic that set it apart from related hadrosaurs.

Named by

Seeley

Year named

1883

Period

Late Cretaceous

Stage

Maastrichtian

Found in

Netherlands (Maastricht region, the Netherlands/Belgium)

Orthomerus is generally regarded as a nomen dubium. It is a hadrosaur (hadrosaurid ornithopod dinosaur) known only from fragmentary remains — primarily a partial femur — from the Maastrichtian of the Netherlands. Because the material is so incomplete, the genus cannot be reliably diagnosed or compared to other hadrosaurs. Some historical sources have attempted to refer additional European hadrosaur material to it, but it is now widely considered an indeterminate hadrosaurid.