May 11, 2016

The nomenclatural status of the theropod dinosaur genus Altispinax v. Huene, 1923, known from a single specimen from the Wealden of East Sussex, England, is discussed. It is shown that Altispinax dunkeri v. Huene, 1923 is a valid taxon according to the ICZN, based onv. Huene’s original description. The species was erected by a deliberate use of misidentification according to article 11.10 of the ICZN, and not based on the isolated, most probably undiagnostic tooth from northern Germany described by Dames in 1884, but on diagnostic material, three articulated vertebrae, from the Wealden of East Sussex (NHMUK 1828). Both the specific name Acrocanthosaurus altispinax Paul, 1988 and the generic name Becklespinax Olshevsky, 1991 are junior objective synonyms.

Michael W. Maisch (2016),
The nomenclatural status of the carnivorous dinosaur genus Altispinax v. Huene, 1923 (Saurischia, Theropoda) from the Lower Cretaceous of England.
Neues Jahrbuch für Geologie und Paläontologie - Abhandlungen 280(2): 215-219
DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1127/njgpa/2016/0576