NEW ARCHOSAUR SITES IN THE CENOMANIAN WOODBINE FORMATION OF NORTH TEXAS:THE DISCOVERY OF ARLINGTON'S FIRST DINOSAUR

New hadrosaur (Dinosauria:Ornithischia) material has been recovered from a series of Archosaur sites that occur in the Upper Cretaceous (Cenomanian) rocks of the Woodbine Formation in north central Texas. The cranial and post-cranial material recovered was collected from Woodbine Formation exposures that occur in north Arlington, Tarrant County and along the north shores of Lake Grapevine; southern Denton County, Texas. The sites occur within the terrestrial facies of the Woodbine; floodplain muds and channel sands. The fossils recovered to date include hadrosaur teeth, vertebrae, and partial limbs along with crocodile teeth, scutes and vertebrae.

Archosaurs have been documented within the Cretaceous rocks of north central Texas. However, many questions remain about Cenomanian faunas; as well preserved fossil material is rare. The new hadrosaur material recovered from the Woodbine Formation exposures in Arlington and at Lake Grapevine expands what is known of the post-cranial morphology of Cenomanian hadrosaurs in North America. The hadrosaur material recovered from Tarrant Co. represents the 1st dinosaur discovery made in the city of Arlington.