Xenodens
| Xenodens Temporal range: Late Cretaceous,
| |
|---|---|
| CT rendering of the holotype maxilla | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Reptilia |
| Order: | Squamata |
| Clade: | †Mosasauria |
| Family: | †Mosasauridae |
| Subfamily: | †Mosasaurinae |
| Genus: | †Xenodens Longrich et al., 2021 |
| Species: | †X. calminechari
|
| Binomial name | |
| †Xenodens calminechari Longrich et al., 2021
| |
Xenodens (from Greek and Latin for "strange tooth") is an extinct genus of mosasaurine mosasaurid known from the Late Cretaceous (Maastrichtian age) phosphate deposits in the Ouled Abdoun Basin of Morocco. The genus contains a single species, Xenodens calminechari, known from two isolated maxillae (upper jaw bones) with unusual saw-like teeth. While some researchers have expressed uncertainty regarding the authenticity of the holotype specimen, additional remains and CT scans have supported the original identifications.