An excavation in 1930s Cimarron County resulted in a set of bones that would puzzle paleontologists for decades. Using money from the Works Progress Administration, a crew dug under the direction of researcher John Willis Stovall near Black Mesa to find remains belonging to a dinosaur species.
Originally thought to belong to a meat-eating giant, Stovall informally gave it a name later corrected to “Saurophaganax maximus” following his death. That identification was cemented in the state’s records after Gov. Frank Keating signed Senate Bill 1185 designating the species as the state’s official fossil in 2000.
“This spectacular dinosaur, the ‘greatest king of reptile eaters’, once roamed this great land,” the bill reads.
New research, however, suggests that may not be true.
A study published in the journal Vertebrate Anatomy Morphology Paleontology by researchers at Oklahoma State University shows that the set of bones likely belonged to three different species, not one giant. Graduate student Andy Danison said excavation and analyses of fossils differed widely in Stovall’s days, likely leading to the now-doubted conclusion.
“The bones in that quarry have a bit of a tortured history,” Danison said.
Some of the fossils matched up with herbivorous sauropods, which were long-necked vegetarians reaching up to more than 100 feet long.
A third species may have been uncovered by Danison during the study.
The carnivorous Allosaurus anax, which means “different lizard lord,” is thought to have been about the weight of an African elephant and 40 feet long, he said.
“ We're still trying to investigate some of that material a little bit to try to really make sure our conclusions about it are solid,” Danison said. “But we definitely think it's a distinct species from other allosaurus, and there's a lot of literature that supports that.”
Paleontologist and OSU professor Holly Woodward Ballard assisted with the paper, praising Danison’s initiative.
“At the same time, Andy’s attention to detail and care to ensure his methods were rigorous speaks to a level of integrity that I would expect in a more seasoned researcher,” she said in a news release.
As for the likely-debunked state fossil, the bones may have been initially misunderstood because of their handling by undertrained workers more than 90 years ago, the study reads. “As a result, the phylogenetic position of [Saurophaganax maximus] has been contested since its initial description.”
It’s unlikely Danison will petition for a new state fossil, he said. But if he had to choose a new species, it would be the Sauroposeidon – a type of sauropod – because it differs widely from the Saurophaganax.
For now, the graduate student is continuing to work on the subject.
“It's just really cool to me to be a part of that, and just kind of discovering what we can about how the world looked 65 plus million years ago,” he said.
Copyright 2025 KGOU
