page_title: Rhabdodontidae
section_title: Classification
hierarchical_section_title: Rhabdodontidae / Classification
caption_attribution_description: Comparison of rhabdodontid dentaries. A, Rhabdodon sp. (MC 443) in lateral, B, medial views; C, Zalmoxes robustus (NHMUK R4912) in lateral, D, medial views; E, Mochlodon suessi (PIUW 2349/2) in lateral, F, medial views; G, Mochlodon vorosi n. sp. (MTM V 2010.105.1) in lateral, H, medial views; I, Smallest dentary of Mochlodon vorosi n. sp. (MTM V 2010.109.1) in lateral, J, medial views. Anatomical abbreviation: sy, smyphysis.
context_page_description: Rhabdodontidae is a family of herbivorous ornithopod dinosaurs whose earliest stem members appeared in the middle of the Lower Cretaceous. The oldest dated fossils of these stem members were found in the Barremian Castrillo de la Reina Formation of Spain, dating to approximately 129.4 to 125.0 million years ago. With their deep skulls and jaws, Rhabdodontids were similar to large, robust iguanodonts. The family was first proposed by David B. Weishampel and colleagues in 2003. Rhabdodontid fossils have been mainly found in Europe in formations dating to the Late Cretaceous.
  The defining characteristics of the clade Rhabdodontidae include the spade-shape of the teeth, the presence of three or more premaxillary teeth, the distinct difference between the two maxillary and dentary teeth ridge patterns, and the uniquely shaped femur, humerus, and ulna. Members of Rhabdodontidae have an adult body length of 1.6 to 6.0 meters.
context_section_description: There are differing opinions as to the constituents of Rhabdodontidae. Originally they were defined as the last common ancestor of Zalmoxes robustus and Rhabdodon priscus. Later, Paul Sereno proposed a new definition, the most inclusive clade containing Rhabdodon priscus but not Parasaurolophus walkeri. More recently, a morphological diagnosis was proposed, that excluded Muttaburrasaurus, unlike Sereno's definition. The clade Rhabdodontomorpha was coined to contain the larger group. The following cladogram was recovered by Dieudonné and colleagues in 2016:
caption: Comparison of rhabdodontid dentaries
exif: {}