Wedel & Taylor, Neural Spine Bifurcation in Sauropods PalArch’s Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology, 10(1) (2013) NEURAL SPINE BIFURCATION IN SAUROPOD DINOSAURS OF THE MORRISON FORMATION: ONTOGENETIC AND PHYLOGENETIC IMPLICATIONS Mathew J. Wedel* & Michael P. Taylor# *Corresponding author. College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific and College of Podiatric Medicine, Western University of Health Sciences, 309 E. Second Street, Pomona, California 91766-1854, USA.
[email protected] #Department of Earth Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 1RJ, UK.
[email protected] Wedel, Mathew J. & Michael P. Taylor. 2013. Neural Spine Bifurcation in Sauropod Dinosaurs of the Morrison Formation: Ontogenetic and Phylogenetic Implications. – Pal- arch’s Journal of Vertebrate Palaeontology 10(1) (2013), 1-34. ISSN 1567-2158. 34 pages + 25 figures, 2 tables. Keywords: sauropod, vertebra, neural spine, ontogeny, Morrison Formation AbsTrAcT It has recently been argued that neural spine bifurcation increases through ontogeny in several Morrison Formation sauropods, that recognition of ontogenetic transforma- tion in this ‘key character’ will have sweeping implications for sauropod phylogeny, and that Suuwassea and Haplocanthosaurus in particular are likely to be juveniles of known diplodocids. However, we find that serial variation in sauropod vertebrae can mimic on- togenetic change and is therefore a powerful confounding factor, especially when deal- ing with isolated elements whose serial position cannot be determined. When serial po- sition is taken into account, there is no evidence that neural spine bifurcation increased over ontogeny in Morrison Formation diplodocids. Through phylogenetic analysis we show that neural spine bifurcation is not a key character in sauropod phylogeny and that Suuwassea and Haplocanthosaurus are almost certainly not juveniles of known diplodo- cids.