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April 19, 2026FACETS0 citationsOpen Access

An ornithomimosaur from the Campanian Cedar District Formation (Nanaimo Group) of Denman Island, British Columbia, Canada

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VAVictoria M. ArbourTBTimon S. BullardDEDavid C. Evans

Key Points

  • To describe a recently discovered theropod vertebra and its implications for dinosaur presence in the Nanaimo Group.
  • Analysis of isolated theropod caudal vertebra from Cedar District Formation
  • Comparison with known ornithomimosaur vertebrae
  • Geological assessment of Nanaimo Group sediments
  • Identification of the vertebra as likely belonging to an ornithomimosaur
  • First dinosaur remains reported from Canadian outcrops of the Nanaimo Group
  • Indicated that the vertebra was possibly transported from a different region of North America

Abstract

Despite decades of intensive collecting effort in the Upper Cretaceous Nanaimo Group of Vancouver Island, no definitive dinosaur remains have been reported. Here we describe an isolated theropod caudal vertebra from marine sediments of the Campanian-aged Cedar District Formation of Denman Island, representing only the second report of dinosaur bones from the Nanaimo Group and the first report from Canadian outcrops. The proportions of the centrum and prezygapophyses are consistent with those of ornithomimosaurs, but the specimen cannot be identified more precisely. The vertebra was likely transported from the western margin of North America to the east. The Nanaimo Group was deposited at least 600 km south of its present position, and this ornithomimosaur likely lived at a similar palaeolatitude to contemporaneous dinosaur faunas in the Two Medicine and Judith River formations in the Western Interior.

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Cite This Study

Arbour et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/69e47193010ef96374d8df07https://doi.org/10.1139/facets-2023-0079
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